The Stars Never Stay and Neither Do You
by Just-LiveLaughLove
Summary: Caroline has sacrificed ten years to the hands of a man with the face of an angel-the heart of a devil. Her friends, in an attempt to save her, unbury certain mysteries that may ridden the evil that lingers in their lives. But legend has it that the Beauty will fall for the Beast, and if this myth becomes truth-we wonder; just how noble will she be where her heart is involved
1. Chapter 1

Caroline, reluctant, though utterly noble, has sacrificed ten years of  
her existence to the hands of a man with the face of an angel- the heart of a  
devil. Her friends, in an attempt to rescue the golden girl, unbury mysteries  
that may be the remedy to the evil that lingers in their lives.  
But legend has it that the Beauty will fall for the Beast, and if this myth  
becomes truth - we must beg the question; just how noble will she be where her  
heart is involved?  
Though in the years confined to the chains of her captor, her heart speaks in  
silent flutters, her body in an agonizing heat of unbearable desire.  
She wonders just how good Klaus is, or more-so, just how dark she has become?  
The chains bound around her wrists and neck are now worn like jewels strung with pearls. A token  
for a dangerous relationship she may never escape. Even if she wanted to

**  
**

* * *

**The stars never stay and neither do you**

** .**

** .**

**.**

An Unlikely Request

** .**

** .**

** .  
**

_No one ever warned her that when all is said and done- Klaus will never forget.  
Though, a fool they all were- to not have been prepared._

Caroline's cell phone vibrates in her pocket- disrupting her and Tyler's reunion. All tears and shuddering breaths filling the receiver.  
"Elena, calm down. What's wrong?"  
"Klaus-he came after Damon and Stefan… Caroline one of his hybrids _bit_them".

Caroline's blood freezes when her eyes look over Tyler's shoulders and onto a rugged man. Lurking forward with golden orbs for eyes. A roman soldier on his quest for death.

"Tyler-" Caroline's warning scatters to all ends when he yelps as Klaus' hand plunges through his chest. Fingers fisting snuggly around the boys' heart. "Tyler!"

"You didn't think I had forgotten, did you?" Klaus murmurs, blood coating his fingers as her snakes them around the hybrid-pups neck.  
"Ambushed I was- desiccated I became at the hands of the Salvatore brothers and your dear-sappy excuse for a boyfriend."

She holds up arms in resignation, gambles on a step forward, voice upon a quiver "Klaus, please. Just stop!"

"Come now, sweetheart. I don't take betrayal lightly. I do believe retribution is in order."  
He finds her eyes and she can see a flicker of excitement there- a promise that he will do it. That he _wants_to do it.

"Klaus, please…please, I will do anything you want."

His hands go still, eyes focusing on nothing but this child, "and what, do tell, makes you think that has any effect on me?"

She holds his eyes, refuses to be disregarded. Her golden hair shields the drops of tears trailing down her cheeks.  
With a grin she is yet quite to understand, he releases an unconscious Tyler. Lets him tumble to the floor.  
"This is not yet over, dear heart" he gives her one last discerning look before he leaves her to pick up the pieces of her fortitude.

Though he refuses to admit it, not too many hours from now- she will convince him of her _effect_.

* * *

"Are we negotiating now?" Klaus lounges in the chair. The bourbon swivels in his cup as he holds it to his lips. His eyes peering over at her from the rim of his glass.  
Crossing her arms over her chest, she simply tilts her head to the side. _Are we going to do this or what?  
_  
"Very well then" he pulls himself forward, planting his drink on the table with a clink. "What have you to offer?"  
"Me" she answers. Doesn't bother beating around the bush, because quite frankly- Klaus deserves everything double speed. Like a slap to the face. Or a merciless _death_.

Klaus is momentarily stunned. Though, like his usual- somewhat- measured self, resumes a placid look of transgression.  
"Under what terms?" he mirrors the slant of her neck.. Mocking her adorably- delirious attempt to take control.  
"Excuse me?" she straightens... She's here for Tyler. Not for Elena.

"Well, I presume there are certain terms and conditions I must meet. If I want _you_ that is."  
"Tyler walks free" she begins. He raises his eyebrows, encouraging her to continue "and Elena is left alone".  
He laughs, cold and amused. "Now, why would I leave my blood bank- the essential elixir to my hybrids lives, here? In mystic falls?"

"I-" she sucks in a breath when a gust of wind presents Klaus standing directly before her. His angled face merely a hair width away from her lips.  
"- Clearly, didn't think this through" he finishes for her, and like the true predator he is, Klaus circles the baby vampire. She can feel his eyes observing her. Feels a trail of hot coal dance across her flesh.

"Although" he murmurs, pausing behind her. Commanding a shrill shiver to trace down her spine.  
"What?"  
"perhaps a trial?" she turns questioningly. _Trial?_He stares her down with saccharine eyes and a thick flash of teeth as the meaning dawns on her in waves of fear.

* * *

She packs the next day. All the necessities- toothbrush, underwear, multi colored tops, short denim pants and a pair of slacks. Her fingers scrape against red material, black-silk lace threaded through its seams.  
Lingerie? No, she sure as hell shouldn't need that.  
_  
Travel light Caroline, _he had said _you will not be able to resist what fashion the world has made for you alone_.

For her alone? She cannot deny the excitement and curiosity that welled deep in her chest. Though, none of that matters, at least not right now.  
She doesn't say her goodbyes. There wouldn't be a use; people will try stopping her: Elena and Bonnie.  
Someone would insist on her sacrifice: Damon.

Others would plead with her to reconsider; Stefan, Matt, _Tyler_. His face ignites a sudden fuse- a sharp pang of guilt and worry amalgamating as one. _I'm sorry_she whispers.

Wondering if the words will ever reach his heart, she shakes away his face, closes tight eyelids and slams her suitcase shut.

* * *

The next morning they find her room empty. It lacks a golden light- it lacks her over-bearing energy.

There's a stale texture filtering the air- someone unwelcome infiltrated this very room- it sits heavy in timid waves. All that shows for it are two vials filled with crimson liquid. A remedy for two hybrid bites.  
But Caroline... Well, she's gone.

**TBC**

* * *

Hi all,  
this fic may not follow what is currently happening on TVD. But please let me know if I should continue. Criticism will help me a great ordeal and certainly assist you in resisting the urge to hurtle this fic out the window along with your comp. which face it, your computer just doesn't deserve.

can I quickly say,  
Klaus' reaction to Tylers conquests! I can't even...


	2. Chapter 2

**Wishes are food for the week-minded**

**.**

** .**

** . ****  
**

_"Miss Forbes, just how much did you expect to get out of your little venture to the lair of the big bad wolf?"  
"Enough with these games, Klaus. Do we have a deal or not?"  
"Touchy". His voice rumbled, "But I think, before you sign the contract in blood, you should at least know what this agreement of ours entails?"  
She merely looked at him. So he continued with a crooked grin gracing his features.  
"We leave this one-pony town, you and I. We do not look back. Not once. For ten years."  
"Ten years!"  
"What is ten years in the grand scheme of things, love? A vampire lives countless of them."  
Her eyebrows pulled together, "I have friends that aren't damned to eternity!"  
"Than perhaps you should hurry along home" he fastened deep crystallized eyes on hers. "Maybe I should pay Elena a visit or perhaps finish off with Tyler where we left off". He flashed a smirk fit for nothing but a wolf.  
There was a dark rimming around the blue of her eyes as she threw her hands up in discontent. "Fine! Fine, okay".  
"Okay?"  
A deep breath, a firm voice, "Okay. Where do I sign?"  
_

_._

_._

_._

* * *

The warmth of the sand stretches from the crevices of her toes to the very tip of her fingers.  
She breathes in the deep sea-air; relishes in the fresh invigorating taste of sunshine seeping into her pores.  
Tries to ignore the potent mouth-watering anticipation of warm liquid pulsing beneath the thin layer of skin of all these people around her.

When she searches for her escort, she finds him leaning against a dilapidated fence that encases the beach, with girls (graduates, no doubt) swooning over the tantalizing accent he deceitfully purrs in to allure his victims. Granted, with the sunglasses he wears - casting a shadow over the high set of cheekbones - he won't need to talk much to ensnare his conquests.

She sets free a distinctive scoff that he (to her disdain) quite easily hears. He looks up, lets the nameless girl fade into the background so he can remove his glasses, and, the nerve of him, _wink_ at Caroline. She slumps down on her beach towel and begins reading a certain contract.  
It doesn't take long for him to abandon his ridiculous excuse of an entourage, his body obstructing the suns path to Caroline's bare legs.  
"Are you still looking at that insufferable piece of paper?" He stares down at her, nursing a beer in his meticulous fingers.  
She crushes it to her chest, protectively, "this piece of paper has _every_ rule written on it. You said yourself that I should know what I was agreeing to. Remember?"  
"Yes," he nods. "However I was simply speaking about a _metaphorical_contract- I prefer giving my word. You, my love, insisted upon it being written"

She folds the paper between delicate fingers, "because you are _so_ reliable," she says as she stores it away in her beach-bag. He sits by her, stretching out his legs he beams, "I like to believe I am a man of my word", he gives a roguish grin before raising eyebrows, "more or less." She rolls her eyes, deciding sunglasses were her best option to avoid his eager stares. _  
_"Stop being so dramatic, Caroline" he breathes, "Soon you will have trouble containing your excitement."  
"It's been four weeks, Klaus. You can understand my lack of enthusiasm."  
He gestures to the humans around them,

"Well the beach party is bound to be a _killer _of a night"

* * *

He doesn't dance, not once – well, not _yet_.  
He sits in one of those beach chairs, a young teen-girl perched on the bend of his knees. Her hand (consciously) slips into the small gaps of his shirt as she twirls her hair and laughs aimlessly into his cheek. Every so often the _slut_leans in to whisper random- meaningless nothings into his ears.

_Sweet naivety is so delectably entertaining_.

The licks of flames from the bon-fire only accentuates the sharp angle of his jaw, enriches the thirst in his eyes. A thirst this ignorant mistakes for something far less detrimental.

Caroline nonetheless indulges in the heightened emotions of the hormonal boys and girls grinding against each other. So this is what college is like? Not too shabby.

There's a shift in the atmosphere. A strong scent spices the air and she freezes instantly. When she spots him in the belly of the crowd, her stomach turns.

Its looks innocent enough; just a girl pressing against a precariously sexy man with a voice like velvet- her back flush against his chest. His arm snakes across her waist, holding her to him- lest she fall from the loss of blood. His head is bent over the sweet crook of her neck, lips closing around an oozing wound. Caroline cannot seem to look away; she can hear the incessant pull of the girls' blood as the heart slows in a useless attempt to keep beating.

She is beside him before she even rationalizes her motive. Fingers grazing the roll of his bicep.  
His shoulders, still arching over the petite body encircled in his arms relaxes. He brings his head up, presses his cheek against the weary girls head.

"Caroline," he smiles, lips tinged red. "Care for a taste darling?"  
"Klaus what are you doing?" Caroline grits.  
He observes his surrounding, "no need to worry, love. They have no idea." He smiles against his prey-whose head lulls in a heavy faintness. Licking a speck of blood from her cheek.

"Klaus, stop! You are going to kill her." The fires' shadows dances in the deep set of his eyes. He grips the girls chin tipping her head to rest against his shoulder. Exposing the gash at her neck, smiling, he wraps his mouth around it once more.

Caroline breathes deeply. Mesmerized by the sensual appeal about all of this and maybe if she just -

"I don't particularly enjoy being watched when feeding" head still bent, he looks up at her, though a smug smile mars his features when his eyes settle on her face, "Unless… you are going to join?"

Her body jolts a little when the soft prick of her fangs graze her lips. She instinctively covers her mouth and flees the scene. Coils when she hears a low chuckle emanating from his throat.

* * *

She stands on the balcony awash in silver moonlight. Watching the slow push and pull of the tide ease in and out on the shore below. She, (unsuccessfully) tries to count the twinkling specs of light that tint the primitive skin of the ocean.  
"You left the party fairly early, love," Klaus' hypnotic voice, ripples and shatter the short moments of her peaceful lieu.  
Caroline, defiant creature that she is, keeps her back to him. Remains silent in the alcohol-tinged breeze of the Caribbean night.  
Sitting on the bed he begins to remove his shoes, patiently awaits the sound of her voice. One she denies him spitefully.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Don't call me that" she snips, fingers curling tightly around the flimsy piece of metal. "Don't pretend to actually care how I feel after feasting on, what? Six different girls?"  
"If I am not mistaken," his voice crackles, his words suddenly coaxing her resentment, "I would take it that you are jealous of the connection me and my appetizers shared."

"I had many companions tonight- so don't flatter yourself."  
"Please," he chides, walking till he stands behind her. Her nerves aflame. "They were but petty excuses of humans."

"And _you_ know what it means to be human?" her voice incredulous, on a precipice of falling into skeptical laughter "you are _disgusting_." He leans against the railing she holds onto so despondently and folds his arm. Wears an expression she comes to, resistibly believe is… guilt?

"I am rather confident that those girls wouldn't agree," He begins, his frown stretching into a patronizing grin "well, if they were still _kicking _that is."

The illusion shatters, her rage unfurls in a static surge of retaliation. Her hand snaps up- tries to reach his face in a distinctive assault only a woman consumed with hatred can perfect. But to her (mistakenly) gallant attempt, his fingers snare around her wrist like a vise, pulling her to him effortlessly. His voice, low and murderously judicious, whispers against the shell of her ear. "Be sure not to make assumptions, Caroline"

Her bones creak in pain, _he will let up soon_ she thinks, _he will let up soon_.

With one last squeeze, he relinquishes his hold and leaves her to the silence that embraces the golden girl.  
She cradles her purpling arm against her chest, hears the clatter of shackles close around her wrists in her mind. Caroline holds a short cry low in her throat until the bathroom door closes shut and the shower surges to life.  
Only then, in a moment of weakness does she allow the walls she has so diligently built to crumble, _only slightly_, so her tears can fall.  
What has she agreed to? She wonders venomously, _how am I going to survive this?_

Just as her wrist replenishes with white blood cells a tail of flames combust in the air beside her. She slaps a hand over her mouth to stifle a shriek. On alert she searches the now dense air, small streamers of smoke spiraling in the breeze. Looking down, she finds a scorched ball of white, hesitantly; she stoops down and plucks the corner of the crunched paper in her fingers. A quick glance over her shoulder, Caroline begins to unfold it and the moment she hears what whispers from her hand, her heart races.

She knows that handwriting; she would know it from anywhere. With sharp jagged lines that show for the rage radiating off sturdy fingers, print the page, the cursive tails of the E's and S's –_Tyler_, he has written a letter, and the sender-the witch, her friend, deliver a message that makes her hold a superfluous breath and look to the door the monster sits behind.

_"Hang in there, Caroline. We are figuring out a way to kill Klaus"_

_._

_.__  
_  
A wishful flutter of overwhelming hope flits through her.

Maybe someone should tell her, that wishes are food for the weak-minded.

* * *

Hello Again,  
I know not Much happeend in this chapter. But I do hope you'll stick around so I can share this fic i have been tossing around in my head for a few weeks:)  
Question, what do you think of Klaus' attitude? I will be bringing more depth into him, that i swear! but at the moment, does he seem too soft?  
Please drop a review about what you think? constructive criticismis always welcome.  
Oh, and due to site regulations I may have to change the rating in later chapters... so yeh, :)  
_  
_


	3. Chapter 3

**.**

**.**

**These games we play might as well be with fire**

.

.

* * *

_Time lurks forward-peers over your shoulder to witness the dreams you so frenetically chase. Little do you know, with each passing stroke on the arms of the clock – Time and you are racing to the finish line.  
_  
Caroline, on a jolt of discomposure, looks over her shoulder another time. Frightful Klaus will find her absence stretching on that little bit too long.

'Bonnie' she types, ignoring the profound eyes of surprise from onlookers who witness her fingers blur over the keyboard. 'I cannot stay online much longer. But I have bought a disposable untraceable mobile. I am in Barcelona as we speak. When you have more news – let me know as soon as you can and please, please take care of Tyler'.

'Caroline – '

She logs out before the witch can relay a response. Simply fixes her hair, a young Alice draping herself in the pale blue dress before meeting the Queen of Hearts. Hoping hers won't be torn out like Alice's one was – In the fairytale that was never read to you as a child.

* * *

"You realize we can listen to him with no trouble." Caroline says. Watching him fiddle with the radio in his agile fingers.  
"Yes, but I do believe you enjoy engaging in trivial human activities and _this_" he waves the receptor in her face, "constitutes as human normality."  
He tweaks with the knob looking for the right channel as she fixes the ear piece in place, looking at the two opposing government building and town hall they stand between.  
"Where are we anyway?" she questions, intrigued by the cobbled stone floors she stands on.  
"We are," Klaus murmurs, fitting the neck chain over her head – careful not to touch her, "in the Plaça Sant Jaume."  
"And for future reference, placa means square"

"Aren't you going to wear it?"  
He chuckles, though it deflates quickly when she does not reciprocate, "I refuse to wear those ridiculous devises."  
"Well I have to so you must too." Caroline cogently explains.  
He shakes his head, "no."  
She hops on her feet, tipping her head backward, "oh come on, Klaus. _Please_!"  
He tips his head with a bemused expression. "Are you really going to have a tantrum?"  
"I am very capable," she grins.  
When he doesn't answer, she snatches another radio and slings it over his neck. Begins preparing the channel, pressing against his chest as she concentrates on ridding the presence of static disruption.

_It's all a game, Caroline. Let him believe he holds your trust. You must get his in return.  
_  
"All done" she says – ignoring Bonnie's words – smoothing out the folds of his jackets. Tugging on the collars, "you look so… touristy."  
"Brilliant." He grumbles.  
"Good morning everyone!" the tour guide begins. "My name is Amado and I will be your guide for the gothic tour today."

Klaus's nose scrunches as they begin following the group.  
"What is it?"  
"His voice is frustrating"  
She represses a smile as Amado delves into historical facts that educes numerous oohs and aahs.

Amado continues, "Barcelona is said to be its own country, separate from Spain. Known as Catalonia." –

"The term 'Catalunya' itself derives from the meaning 'land of castles'" Klaus murmurs into Caroline ear, "a reason why my family ventured out to the old lands".

– "a term used since the 11th century. This Greek colonized country also had Romans living here since 5BC."

"Not just the Romans," Klaus tells Caroline, "but for many decades the Jews and Arabs also occupied this country."

Klaus gently grips the bend of Caroline's elbow, "look," he points to a line of gargoyles aligned atop of the archways.  
"They are incredibly freaky" Caroline offers, plucking a roasted almond from Klaus' cup. Ones he bought earlier for her.  
"Well that was the point," he murmurs, "the gargoyles are said to protect the city and amongst them, back in the 14th century building near the town hall we just came from, is said to be a Turkish man amongst them."

Moments when Klaus seems deeply invested in a certain site, Caroline will sneak a picture. Let his words course through her thoughts. _Great cities and art and music_. Though, it's when he leans into her cheek, gently touches her – a touch she does not rebuke – and shares intriguing facts that only elevates his level of power, she realizes, he's the one sneaking up on her.

"This is one of my favorite streets" Amado assembles them at the top of Baixada de Santa Eulàlia.  
"This street marks one of our patron saints 'Eulalie's' death" Caroline snaps another picture, before reaching for the cup of sweets Klaus holds out to her. Munching on his own mouthful. She finds it rather amusing, the 'big bad' snacking on nuts. _Oddly human._

"At the age of thirteen the Romans persecuted her for the belief she had in a monotheistic religion. And so, she suffered thirteen forms of torture. One of which she was trapped in a box filled with knives and shards of glass before being rolled down this very street."

Caroline's mouth falls open, looking up to Klaus in question.  
He simply nods.

"During the early establishment of Christianity they were persecuted by the Romans. A lot of the polytheistic religions found it almost blasphemous that they would dare deny the existence of previous gods. It became a war"

Klaus nods with a small smile, "We were feasting on Christians and Romans alike. And because they were at war with each other, the need to cover our tracks was no longer an issue. So we fed as we please." Caroline's face freezes in a place torn between disgust and horror.  
"Oh don't give me that look," he grunts, "humans were murdering _each other_. We simply indulged on the opportunity of spilt blood over such petty issues like religion."

"Would you look at that," Klaus walks away from Caroline, places their cups of almonds on the floor to trace the indented lines on the wall.  
"Oh yes," Amado holds out his hand to where Klaus stands, "back in the early fifth century – a time swords were wielded – men would sharpen their weapons on the stone walls."  
Klaus stands back with Caroline as everyone snaps a photograph of the preserved rock wall.  
"Were you there or something?" Caroline asks. Taking out her camera.  
"We weren't just there. Me and my brothers made those markings."  
"Are you serious? That was you?" her eyes widen. He smiles coyly, "It was actually a time Fin wasn't such a dullest and Kol, well… he enjoyed the women here."  
"Elijah?"  
Klaus doesn't look away from the marking, a dark colouring of nostalgia shading his eyes. "Elijah was with us, he sat against the wall and recited Gallic writings while Kol and I hacked away."

"What are you doing?" Klaus looks down at Caroline as she pushes him to the wall, the pressure of her palms uselessly shoving against his _original _strength. "If you think I am not taking a picture with the man who actually put those markings there _centuries_ago – you have got another thing coming!"

"We have reached our time for this tour, my friends. But I must implore you all to have a look at the ancient roman city that lies beneath our feet. It's an extraordinary site."

After a compromise, Klaus finally stands by the wall and smiles under Caroline's order. Once the flash disappears he pulls out his wallet and hands her a bill, "they get fairly stingy if you don't tip"  
Caroline eyes the fifty euro, "I thought tips were not only optional, but cheaper. I mean, I could buy a dress with this" Klaus returns his wallet to his pocket, and pinches his nose, "I will buy you all the dresses that you would like, sweetheart. But for now give the man his money. I'm hungry."  
"ok." She thanks Amado for his efforts, "and I can buy my own dresses thank you very much."

"Gentlemen" Amado quickly calls out, don't forget what today is. Treat your ladies to a nice dinner, ay?"

"So what are we going to eat?" Caroline asks taking Klaus' devise over his head to return it to their guide.  
They begin down Calle Ferran street before he ventures, "I particularly enjoy the paella?"  
"Ok, let's eat then," she smiles up at him, taking his hand and pulling him into the closest restaurant.

.

.

.

"That was amazing," Caroline drops her fork and sits back in her chair.  
She cannot help but smile shyly under Klaus's soft gaze – a thought swimming in the depth of his eyes, "what?"  
"Nothing, love" he answers, looking past her shoulder and giving a resolute nod.

At that moment one of the waiters appears with a plate of desert and a flower for her enjoyment. A violin streaming music through the restaurant filled with couples.  
She looks between the man and Klaus before thanking the waiter for the chocolate cake.  
"Umm, what just happened?"  
The hybrid gives a reassuring grin, "relax sweetheart. Its 'La Diada de Sant Jordi'" she smiles at the fluency of his words, raising eyebrows to encourage he explain the meaning.  
"It's 'Valentine's day'" he shrugs, having a bite of her cake.  
"Happy valentine's day, Miss Forbes" then he gives her a smile that has a touch of bashfulness it makes her think;  
Why it cannot be _this_man – this version of him – that stays longer. Rather than, blink occasionally in the night, like a wishful star, before disappearing – without a trace.

.

.

.

"The stores close rather early. Don't they?" Caroline presses her forehead against the glass. Trying to determine if it requires another visit. Streets now almost empty. Lamps barely illuminating the path they walk on. He doesn't respond. Remains eerily quiet.

Klaus leans on the wall beside her and folds his arms, "Caroline,"  
"mm?"  
"Where were you earlier this morning?" she goes completely still, swallows the lump forming in her throat that renders her speechless.

"What?" she raises her eyes to meet his terrifyingly calm ones. A certain reigned- in- ferocity tinting the rimming of his blue azures.  
"Where were you, earlier this morning?"  
"I was, I was –" he steps forward and leans his arms against the wall beside her head, raising his eyebrows.  
"It's a simple question, Caroline" his voice rumbles – disturbingly unperturbed, "Where were you, earlier this morning?"  
She is all too aware of his closeness. The rise and fall of his chest. The rigid muscles rippling under his long sleeve shirt that traps her to the wall.

_The only way this is going to work is if he trusts you_

"I was flirting with the r-register guy." She is surprised by the firmness of her voice.  
One side of his mouth quirks up, a shadow cast across the side of his angled face, "Alright then" he breathes. Considering her for a moment with a heavy glare. "That wasn't so hard, now. Was it?"

He drops his arms, smile widening when he hears the slow release of her breath.

"Look," Caroline points. Attempting to calm her nerves, "that's our tour guide."  
Klaus turns to follow her line of vision. A bloodcurdling grin playing at his lips.

"Perfect timing,"  
"What?"

"Hello, mate." She spins around at the increased distance of his voice.  
"Klaus –"

A few feet away, he snags the man's throat and with inhumane speed Klaus's teeth rip into the tender flesh of Amado's neck.  
"Klaus don't! Stop!"  
The man's thrashing and fight for survivals begins to squander into limpness at the constant tugging of his blood.

Thy hybrid looks up and it takes all of Caroline's self control to remain motionless under his golden stare that shimmers dangerously in the moons light.

"Klaus, please" she says gentler. Petrified that this monstrosity of a man will base all actions on nothing _but_instinct.

Klaus looks up and in this moment she is stuck in a vortex, one he won't be releasing her from anytime soon.  
Like a gentle coo, he asks, "Where were you, earlier this morning?"

_Too far in, there's no turning back.  
_  
Arms held up, she responds, words reverberating up a suddenly scathed throat.  
"I already told you, Klaus" her gaze never leaves Amado's eyes that roll to the back of his head in a useless defeat.

"That's right" he chuckles, tongue darting out to lick his lips, "but, the problem is – I don't believe you."  
The only human heart between them begins to tire, lulling beats into noiselessness.

"Klaus, please" she struggles, "you're better than this."

His crystal-golden eyes measure her and when he smiles – all teeth and fangs and blood – her heart hitches.

"My sweet, innocent, Caroline. When will you learn, this is us when we are at our _best_" that being said, Klaus fingers tighten on the man's chin – A man whose face she will never forget – and twists his head back until the quick snapping of bones makes her cringe.

Klaus lets the body drop pointlessly to the floor before extending an arm, holding out his bloodied hand, eyes still florescent yellow,

"shall we?"

_This game you are playing, Caroline Forbes, might as well be with Fire._

* * *

When they step into their hotel room neither of them speaks.

One remains mute due to a scale of fear and writhing hatred.  
The other merely accompanies the girls silence with a stubborn reproach.

Wordlessly he steps into one of the bathrooms and begins his nightly shower. Caroline takes the ephemeral moment to steady her hands. _Just breathe Caroline. Just breathe._

There's a sudden alarm vibrating the air. She shocks awake when she realizes it's her phone ringing!  
She is far from zealous when she lunges to her suitcase and begins gutting her bag until the phone finds her hand.  
The screen bleeps '_unknown'_.

"Hello?" Caroline whispers. Hand over mouth.  
"Caroline?"  
"Bonnie! What the hell are you doing? Don't call; I could have been with Klaus!" She thriftily switches the lounge room television on. Worried the increasing octave of her voice will draw unwanted attention.  
"Caroline, listen –"  
"Give me a second!" She looks around before taking vacancy in the second on-suite bathroom and turns on the taps.  
"Alright. Go"  
"We have been doing some research and apparently there is this witch that has ties with the originals. Which means, if we play our cards right, we might be able to figure out a way to make Klaus' werewolf side dormant."  
"So what you're saying is, we'll be reversing the spell he initially broke?"  
"Yes" she says.

_Which means Tyler will be free and Elena's blood won't be needed_. She doesn't need to say.

Caroline sits on the edge of the bathtub, "ok… So where is she?"  
"That's just it. We don't know. Apparently – legend says, none can find this place unless they already know where it is"  
The young vampire flinches when she notices the showers water go silent. One a ragged breath she hisses, "So what do you want me to do?"  
"You got to get it out of Klaus."  
"How the hell am I supposed to do that?"  
"Well I went digging in my grams grimoirs and found a herb that lets you enter other people dreams."  
She begins to fidget nervously; Klaus's bloodied hands still staining her memory.  
"Bonnie that sounds like it could back fire."  
"It's our only hope, Caroline" Bonnie sighs, "I don't see what else we can do."  
Running a hand through her hair, closing her eyes to see Tyler smiling back Caroline moans, "Alright. How do I get them?"  
"Well I'm going to send them to you. Are you in Barcelona for the next week?"  
"I'll make sure we are. Ok?"  
"Ok. Caroline I am going to do everything I can to track down this witch, ok? We are doing what we can."  
"Ok. I have to go" she snaps the phone shut and puts her head between her knees. _One step at a time, Caroline.  
_There's a tingle on the back of her neck.

Reluctant to leave the cold bathroom floor she heaves herself up and turns off the tap.

She swings the door open and –

"Klaus"

She slaps her hand to her mouth when her face meets his. lips more like his usual pink, unlike the god-awful red he licked clean earlier.

"Caroline, dear" he piques "why so jittery?" His arms lean on the door frames. Obstructing her exit. His torso bare.  
"You just scared me" she wages on a laugh that quivers in the short space between them. Her heart beating rapidly beneath her breast bone.

He squints, looking behind her, eyebrows furrowed, "Were you talking to someone?"

"No," she subtly slips the phone into her back pocket. Pales when his eyes follow her movement.  
"The TV was on" she suggests, "Could have been that."  
His eyes trace the length of her bare legs before finding her eyes – all the while her heart rests in her mouth, blood gushing like an ocean behind her ears – he raises his eyebrows with a shrug and mumbles,

"Alright than."  
He steps away and slumps down on his twin bed.

"May want to get some rest, Caroline." he encourages – like a friend – tucking his forearms underneath his head.  
He smiles up at her with malice, causing goose bumps to erupt over her snow-white flesh.

"Long ten years ahead of us."

* * *

_Section two paragraph three, line seven: 'In the duration of this solitary confinement, death mustn't meet Miss Caroline Forbes. She will be given ten years to travel, ten years to wonder and ten years to fulfill a duty to the man with death as his ally'._

.

_Twice, she had held a timorous breath._

_She'd been counting; on two occasions she had frozen in a place of true and utter fear. In two unwarranted situations, she had properly believed her end had been met._

Now, this makes it three.

"Revenge isn't your style, love" he taunts one afternoon.  
"Oh, it isn't?" –

She twists a pencil in her hand, watches him gaze at her as he pulls out the pen she embedded into the side of his ribs with a wince. _If only she used the pencil… pushed just that little bit further_. –

"No" he mumbles.

Once the bloodied object falls from his deft fingers she launches forward, pencil poised over her shoulder.  
Klaus whimsically side steps her attack, catching her waist, spinning her to him. Back flush against his hard chest,  
fingers squeezing tightly on her wrist; insisting she disposes of this fatuous attempt of harming him with a pencil.  
Her recalcitrant behavior dissipates when the attempt of moving poses more of a threat than a positivity – with his lips grazing her neck – so she lets her weapon fall.

Klaus continues as if her assault was nothing more than a reckless _game_, "you take it upon yourself to shed light onto everyone around you" he murmurs against her ear.  
His accent tormenting, lips tempting.  
"Your heart," he whispers his fingers above her breast – where her _non_-life waits. "Cannot fathom torture. At least, not delivered by you. You spare some glee on the good; your precious boyfriend and the doppelganger. Stroke some hope – redemption, into the bad; Damon" he smiles against her cheek. "_Me"_.  
"No, she struggles against him, repulsed by the tickle of his flesh, "I don't care about you!"  
"Really now?" he chuckles. Fingers closing around hers that hang uselessly at her sides.  
"Yes" she whispers. Somehow unsure. _  
_  
"Than why are you letting me hold you so?"  
Noticing the suspension of his pressure, she snatches herself away, the cold attacking her back, where his body had warmed her. Filled her with strength but weighed her down with uncertainty.

"I hate you" she spits. _Hybrid be damned, my friends are not your play things. _  
"And you're wrong" she continues bitterly, an audacious step forward, "If I had the choice, if I had the ability, I _would_ kill you. I would endeavor to claim my revenge. On behalf of my friends. Me. _Tyler_".  
His eyes darken, and the laugh that accompanies them is menacing. It looms over her when he turns to leave, to merge into the darkness.

"Do what you will Caroline. But prepare two graves. For revenge always takes more than one with it".  
"I would gladly die. If it meant your own death" a malevolent retort, an inviting concept… well, on his behalf.  
The brush of wind at his discrete movements shuns her. His face is suddenly leveled with hers. His voice eerily obsequious.

"I could always introduce you to death myself, Caroline" he leans in, fingers grazing her arms – a rippling shiver corrupting her power – breath fanning her lips. "I could leave you to the wolves. Listen to your screams for mercy, awaiting the hour your body – despite its gifts, can no longer withstand the torment".  
He steps behind her, brushing golden locks from her neck. Catching her eyes in the mirror "I could drink you dry of all your hope" his lips graze the delicate flesh where her neck and shoulders connect. His words rolling down her chest. "Dwell in the oh so sweet flavor of your petty little dreams".

He catches her eyes again, holds them when he flattens his warm palm on her abdomen, pressing her to him. Her heart races when the cursive suave of his words tickles her perception on reality. When his heart beats strongly against her shoulder blades.  
"I could take you in ways you never would imagine with Tyler" he curls his fingers, digs into her flesh. "I could make you _beg_. Make you sigh in a dance so pleasurable, you could never leave its embrace."  
She tries to steady her breathing, tries to ignore the very scent of him that infiltrates her thoughts.

_Mystery himself wears a cologne; lathered in certain histories that still remain buried in the depths of secrecy. _

"But I won't". He finally says, softening his touch, smoothing his hands over her till they rest on her hips.  
Inhaling her scent from the place of her neck – an action that makes her shiver – she whimpers, "Why?"

Forehead resting on the back of her head, he whispers, "One day you will understand that you are worth so much more than you give yourself credit for". For the first time in her months gone, she willingly looks to him.  
"Until that day, I will not have you" he kisses her exposed shoulder and detaches himself from her. Does not spare a glance over his shoulder when he leaves the room.

A thick confinement of confusion clamps her vision.

What is he playing at? Why say that now, what agenda is veiled in his charm?  
Or could it all be truth, in its most frightening form – a truth that ultimately destroys everything you once believed?

She looks for the beds edge and sits in a venal question of what it is she's doing. Playing fire with fire? Has no one taught her you'll only get burnt?

She changes her mind, death _did_meet her today.

A part of her restraint has died.

** tbc**

* * *

**Yes, that's right. we will be snooping around in Klaus's dreams sometime soon, my friends :)**

**if you read this, please - if you have time, leave a review. Constructive Criticism will help me A LOT!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Youth walks a path of innocence**

.

.

_She reveled in her control – her power. The girl's blood careened into her mouth, bringing her to life.  
But, something shifted, her prey's body crumbled – blood turning to dust.  
It choked the blonde vampire and then someone was grabbing her, strapping Caroline down and forcing a hot iron fork down her throat. All the while ignoring her screams for mercy.  
_

Caroline woke up in shock, closing her fingers around her throat.

The iron fork may have disappeared with the dream, but the burns had been left behind.

Trailing the length of her insides-  
Making it awfully painful to draw breath.

She tumbled off her mattress, her limbs heavy like lead.  
It was not until she reached the foot of the bed that she could take a substantial sniff of her surroundings and smelt it. Strong and warm – sitting somewhere nearby.  
She found the teacup and saucer waiting on the top of her bed side table.

_No!_

She pushed into the wall, trying to merge with it. Digging her nails into her arms so that tiny half moons were torn into her flesh. Just so that she could focus on _that_pain instead.

A half hour passed before Klaus walked in through the door, tossing the keys atop the television and removing his jacket. "Look who decided to finally wake," he said when he chose to acknowledge the pretty little mess sitting in the corner.  
"Take it away," she tried to say, "I – I don't… I – I don-" she collapsed into a fit of coughing. Blistering blades were scorching her airways. Acid was stinging the back of her eyes.  
His fingers gently touched her cheeks and when she looked up, he was before her. Crouched down to better catch her gaze.  
"Do you want to try that again?" he smiled, except it was somewhat tender – betraying concern.  
Caroline drew her knees up further to her chest, her shoulders shaking as her body convulsed.

"Caroline, dear," Klaus curled a finger under her chin and forced her attention on him. "Would you rather starve?"  
Her nerves were sent aflame with each passing breath, "I don't kill people," she cried.  
"Well, fret not," he reached his arm behind her head, his chest brushing her shoulder to grab the beverage so that he could put it under her nose.  
"Klaus!" she jerked away.

"Sweetheart, it's from the hospital."

She froze and looked between him and the cup of blood. "I don't believe you."  
His face hardened in that instant and for a moment she wonders if melted gold would pool in those raging blue eyes.  
"So be it," he growled, taking the cup and walking over to the sink. He looked at her as he held it out, tipping it to the side, slowly letting it swirl listlessly down the drain.  
Her eyes darkened as the artificial light caught the liquid, her veins snaking to life when she heard the splash against marble surface. "Wait," she croaked.  
He pushed his shoulders back. "What's that?"  
She rushed over, crashing into him as her head spun from the abrupt movement.  
His hard chest became her support as her vision started to blur.  
"Easy, love," he murmured into her hair. His arms tightening around her waist to keep her standing.  
Her head swayed, though, defiant to the last, she insured it fell away from him.  
He didn't let it show whether or not he noticed this. He gingerly pressed the rim of the cup to her mouth so her lips barely brushed the crimson water.

Then, she ravaged.

She feebly gripped his wrist, forcing the cup closer, opening her mouth to let it flow and nourish and ignite her all at once.  
Klaus's hand stroked her golden hair, a quiet laughter vibrating in his chest.  
"There, there," he sung, "all better now."

Once her heart was pumping blood instead of rust and her muscles were consumed with lively power, she noticed what she had done. And now, because she could, she flattened her hands against his chest and furiously propelled him away from her.  
She wondered how wild she must have looked – if he enjoyed the sight – with her hair a ferocious mess, eyes crazed and lips stained red.  
"How could you?!" she shivered when her fangs retracted. "_How could you_?!"  
He rinsed the cup in the sink, giving her a moment to simmer down, "I didn't do anything, my pretty golden mess," he teased.  
She slapped the cup from his grasp. "You knew I was weak and you used it against me!"  
"Exactly, Caroline" he slipped his arms back into his jacket, unaffected by the chipped tea-cup, "you were weak, you needed to feed," he explained pointedly.  
"I don't drink from people! You know that – you know what human life means to me."  
He refused to take the bait, simply opening the door to their hotel room, "get ready, we're going out today."  
"You're repulsive and I _hate _you."  
Klaus's transient grin frightened her more than the glare he wore so naturally.  
"I'll meet you downstairs in ten minutes. Get ready."

* * *

She plucked at her brain, trying to convince herself that it was a freak accident, that she had been weak – she couldn't have done anything _but_ drink it. So she promised herself something – it _would not _happen again.  
Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. Her heart turned to stone.

She decided that he could not and would not take away her resolve… he had taken enough already.  
There was a momentary pause before she swung the door open, "I don't want-"  
"I have a parcel for a Caroline Forbes" a delivery man presented her with a package.

"Oh."

She knew who it was from before taking it into her hands.

Bonnie had sent her the herbs.

She gripped the man's collar and her eyes reaching out to his, "you will forget about this" she instructed "you will not repeat this to _anyone_".  
"I will forget this" he repeated monotonously. An easy accomplishment, as simple as blinking.  
Caroline, for a second, was grateful for her breakfast; to woo him with her charms would have proven too difficult in her previous state. "Have a nice day," she said.

She made her way to their bathroom – wishing that there were two suites like in the last hotel – to stash away the herbs under the sink.

Hiding it in a fortress of towels, the baby vampire prayed, more than she had ever known how to, that they would _stay_hidden.

For, if they were found, her _eternity _would earn her nothing more than the hand of _misery_.

* * *

She stepped out into the afternoon sun, wondering if the very floor beneath her feet had ever had another woman – like her – standing here in a predicament similar to the one she lives. Under the spell of a man.

The man that leaned against the wall was with another relatively tall male. The way they laughed made it apparent that there was a certain history invested in the bond. She had never seen him so immersed in a conversation that didn't require his alpha-wolf dominance. He was cloaked in an -Elijah-like presence.  
She waited patiently as they laughed over idle chit chat before Klaus' friend looked over to Caroline, giving her a quick once over – obviously not to anger the hybrid – then looking back to him.

"She's a pretty one, Klaus." Klaus looked behind him to see the fare maiden, sensing the mornings disagreement radiating from her petite frame. "So much more than a pretty face I assure you," he replied  
Caroline scoffed and crossed her arms, but it only amused them all the more.

The man then said something to her captor in a language she couldn't understand. Her curiosity ignited when Klaus' smile faltered for a _split_ second and a look of _something_made him consider her for a long moment before shaking his head and bidding goodbye to the man she deduced was another vampire.

"Forever is a long time, Niklaus." The vampire called to him.

Klaus didn't even spare a glance over his shoulder when he murmured, "That it is, my friend."

.  
.

The pair walked through the park ensconced in silence. It was humid and heavy and making her agitated that he had yet to look at her and apologise.  
"Can I go to the stalls?" she finally broke. Deciding it was a good time to get in touch with someone back home. Leaving him alone to wallow in the thick air.  
"Do what you will." He answered, indifferently, the depth of the park held in his keen blue eyes.  
_  
What on earth has this man said to you?_She wondered. Except, it was Klaus after all, he really didn't deserve her interest.

Caroline made her way through the congested streets, keeps an eye out for the post office, trying to wind her way through the tight bustling of human bodies.  
Watching the tourists huddle together, attempting to stay by each other as their tour guide ushered them along.

Her own personal tour guide could blend in with everyone. Walking amongst them with easy-going eyes and an addictive voice. She had to admit that in the few months he had shown her but a minuscule part of the world, he had yet to lead her astray.

_Bonnie, I received your package. Klaus said something about going to Galapagos Islands sometime soon. Ill update you further when I have more information._

After signing her name at the bottom, xx's and oo's decorating the corners, she compelled the woman at the counter to make this her priority and then, vigilantly ensured her silence regarding this encounter.

"Have a nice day."  
"You too," Caroline threw over her shoulder unaware of the man coming in the same direction.  
Her purse fell from the impact, the collision knocking her back a few steps.  
"I'm sorry," a young man held out his arms to catch her shoulder, "I've got to keep an eye out."  
"No, its fine. That was partly my fault," Caroline assured him. Fumbling over her words when she found green eyes tinted with yellow measuring her. Gorgeous.  
"I should be on my way," she stuttered. He only nodded, stepping aside.  
Her anonymous interrupter cordially held the door open, "Have a nice day, miss."

.

.

Klaus wandered aimlessly through the park, his hands clasped and resting at the dip of his back. Taking notice of all the small changes. Remembering where certain trees had stood before being torn down in order for monuments and statues to be erected.

_'We could be one of the faces they put here one day', Kol said. Reading the inscription. 'Especially in France. I'm sure __Queen __Marie Antoinette__ would have enjoyed knowing our little diamond necklace scheme became an immortal affair'. __  
"Our existence is an unknown dream," Elijah explained, "Why would we promote ourselves in such a way?"  
_  
Klaus smiled grimly at the vivid memory that faded away before him, only to find a young girl curling in on herself, a man coaxing her forward. The stranger reached out to take the youthful, hesitant child into the despicable hands of an unjust craving.

The hybrid squinted, zoning in to hear the conversation.

"That's right, little girl. I'll take care of you," before his stubby fingers could touch the girls, a hand clamped around his sweaty wrist.

Klaus stared down at him- his eyes enraged with disgust, "You will not touch her."  
His voice held warning enough aside from the creaking of the low-life's bones snapping in his fingers.

_Twigs beneath his feet.  
_  
The man yelped, with knees buckling he fell to the floor in excruciating pain, "I do beg of you- _scream_. I for one wouldn't mind explaining our situation to the police". _Poor human, doesn't know what danger grips his limbs.  
_  
The stranger shook his head frantically, mouth gaping with reddening cheeks.  
"You will leave," Klaus began – capturing his eyes, "Go back to your squalor of a home. There, you will take a knife and you will drive it through your heart." The man nodded wordlessly. Eyes wide and empty of control.  
A puppet sacrificed at the hands of the one who pulled his strings.

Klaus turned his attention to the young girl hiding behind a tree.  
He bent low, holding out his hand – tenderly. Careful not to startle the frightened creature. Maintaining a comfortable distance as he spoke.  
"Come now, sweetheart. I won't hurt you."

The child leaned into the trunk, peering over to the man with the unusually flavored accent.

"Can you take me to my mother and father?" her voice was barely a whisper, falling to the floor at her feet.  
Klaus gave a soft smile and tip-toed over to her, "Of course, come now. Let's get you to your family."

With a quick, pointless attempt to analyse her options, she raised her arms and let him hoist her up.

The Original rested her on his hip – the way his mother once had when he was not deemed a bastard boy – and answered the innocent questions only a child would ever think to ask.

"You're something different, aren't you mister?"

He pouted his lips, fairly flawed by her vague summation.

"What ever do you mean?" he retorted lightheartedly. Trying to follow the scent that clings to her - a perfume no doubt her mother must wear.  
"You aren't like most people."  
"What makes you say that, little one?"  
"I don't know," she shrugged her shoulders, and squinted at him with dark brown eyes, stroking her chin like a spectator. It made him laugh. _How inquisitive youth could be. _

"You seem lonely," he paused and looked down at the girl perched in his arms.

This weightless being, like a bolt of lightning in dark, inky nights had completely captured his attention –

"And you shouldn't be lonely," she continued, looking ahead. "You could be a good friend. And being alone makes people do silly things. Like…" she paused to consider her words, scratching her head with tiny fingers, "Wearing different colored socks or something!"

"Well, are _you_ my friend?" he can hardly contain himself, she is far too amusing.  
She knocked on the temple of his head, "Don't be silly!" she laughed, "I don't count."

"I see my dad," the girl, whose name he refused to ask, directed her rescuer forward.

He handed the child over, politely accepting the _thank you _the mother kept chanting, scooping her baby into shaking arms. "Sweetie, why would you walk away like that?" the woman began pulling her to the rug. It didn't stop the girl from turning, smiling at Klaus with large innocent eyes, waving him goodbye. "Thank you, mister."

As the girl stepped out of ear-shot with her mother tending to her, Klaus gripped the man's collar and forced his eyes on him. "Want to keep a better eye on your kid, mate. Anything could happen".

When he looked at the girl, her mother was plaiting flowers into her golden halo of hair - he wondered just how much Rebekah missed out on. –

_Six children surrounded a woman with the gift of purity. She spoke of goodness and forgiveness. Fashioning a painting for their eyes alone.  
Rebekah sat in her lap, letting her mother weave flowers into her hair, flowers that Fin had picked for.  
'I want to be beautiful like you, mother.' the young girl declared.  
'My little butterfly' Esther whispered into her daughter's cheek, 'how I love you so.'  
'Beauty rests in the depths of one's heart and soul, and as long as you have each other – you must protect these qualities. If all else fails, that is all I ask of you, my children. Protect each other.'  
It was an unspoken promise, but a pledge was made when the sun first opened its eyes to the world that morning. _

– Rebekah herself would have cherished the life of a child, raising a daughter more suitably – to love unconditionally, even if it consumed her.

Foolishly, but certainly not worthlessly.

He looked one last time at a life people, no – monsters, like him are no longer entitled to.

_I'm sorry, sister_.

He didn't sense it, but by the wayside – Caroline watched him throw numerous glances over his shoulder, all so the girl would remain safe.

"Where did you go?" Caroline asked, walking up beside him.  
"Nowhere," Klaus continued forward. Ignoring her completely. But she wasn't too enthusiastic about letting this slip by, so she reached out and gripped his forearm insisting he stop.  
With an exasperated roll of his head, he pinched her wrist in between two fingers and pulled her hand away,  
"I was hungry. I had a bite and it was delicious."  
He stepped forward, eliminating all her oxygen as his breath stroked her lips. "Care for a taste, Caroline?" he smiled maliciously.

_I saw you _she wanted to say  
_You aren't fooling anyone, I saw you with that little girl_ she needed to say it.  
Instead she settled for, "You're a pitiful monster, Klaus."

"So I've been told."

Watching him walk through the park, with his hands buried in his pockets, Caroline wondered – just how much was there to this beast? Or if there was a beast at all, perhaps he _was_– after all – a man, or partly at least.

* * *

Caroline's mother used to tell her, _no matter where you are, if you close your eyes and think of home – you'll be safe  
_For years she believed her. Then one day, her front door was left open and her mother had her face buried in her hands. Young as Caroline was, she knew he had left. She had run into the empty house with her breath held, a curling heart. Her father's presence was completely gone. No clothes were in the basket, no diaries to with which she could recite his words – hear his voice. All that was left were the family photos scattered on the walls. Walls that seemed more a prison than a safe harbor. No longer home.

Despite that, she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ignore the vervain that scorches her system.  
Hey body, completely comatose sprawled across the floor. Nothing more than sight to witness her death… or survival. The votes were still being counted.

Klaus had three attackers on him, each armed and unnaturally fluid. Far too agile to be mere humans.  
Nonetheless, Klaus intercepted each blow, landing a fist to their faces. Their grunts of pain spiraling in the evening air when his knee drove into their groins, flicking them away from him to crash into the walls beyond.

But, it was when one of the assailants fastened an arm around his neck, knocking the hybrids legs from beneath him and the other plunging a stake through his chest that Caroline's heart froze. _Don't die_.

The one with fiery red hair stepped forward, expertly spinning a stake between his fingers – eyes alive with bloodlust.  
"Any last words, vampire?" they teased. _Get up! _Caroline tried to shout with lips gone numb. _Klaus, fight back!_  
"Perhaps, just two" Klaus said, his voice gruff and his head hanging low.  
"Speak up, then" the one who reminds her awfully of Damon nudged the beast behind his head, smiling when his comrade stooped to level his face with their victim.

There was a snap in the air. The world froze over. But Caroline realized, no – the man's eyes had snapped into focus, plunging him into fear and a terrible fate.

He had met the eyes of the devil. He saw now, who he faced.

Golden eyes held the goon in a trance.  
"I'm bored," Klaus purred with a sickening twist of his lips.

None of them were prepared for what came next. Veins snaked to life and fangs protruded. But it was when the rearranging of his bones began, with ear screeching cracks and tears that they shrank away. Releasing him completely.

Royal golden hair stretched out over the entire length of his lean body, his hands – dangerous human hands – transforming into claws – fierce animal claws – that would tear easily into the muscles of his prey.

He killed the first two quickly, so that all that was left was a writhing mass of flesh and blood, before tearing their hearts from their chests. Holding their still beating hearts in his mouth, he looked up at the first coward – gripping Caroline's hair and hauling her up.

"Another step forward and I'll end her here and now," He poised a stake over her heart. The wood splintering her chest superficially.  
The uncontained wolf flittered his eyes to the innocent undead beauty before resting them on her assassin.

As sinuously as he became a wolf, he returned to his mortal disguise. Golden eyes now deep sky blue. Skin bare and shadowed from his night's kills. He almost looked human.

Klaus took a casual step forward, his muscles rippling under his Demi-god flesh.

"I mean it!" the attacker repeated. "I'll kill her!" his hand fastened on the stake, twisting it.  
"Klaus," Caroline whimpered.  
All of his senses tuned to her. There was nothing but her voice.  
His jaw clenched and he gave her a look – a promise. Then he nodded. _You will be fine_.

"Close your eyes, Caroline"  
The tone was enough to give her a _taste _of hell. So she complied immediately. Unaware that she has been released and left to sit on the ground.

The sound of screaming, pleading, gurgling would have once made her cry until no tears would come. Right now, she wished all of it upon him.

"What are you?" she could smell blood. Hear fingers fisting around a heart.  
Then came _his_voice, frightfully composed, "I'm a different kind of monster."

She dared a peek, seeing his masterpiece strewn across the alley way. Klaus picked up the stake they had punctured him with and studied it with disbelieving eyes before pocketing the weapon. Her attention started to dim, so her eyes closed once more.

Klaus picked up his jacket, shaking it off before slipping into it to hide his nakedness from his current prisoner.  
Fingers touched her arm but remembered fright had her automatically recoiling.  
"It's okay. It's okay. It's me. You are safe" he pulled her to him, hooking an arm beneath the bend of her knees to carry her on.  
"No, no" she whispered, eyes unfocused. "I can walk."  
"Caroline, my dear – I"  
"I said I can walk," she repeated, gripping his collars for balance whilst he pulled them up together.  
He gave an amused chuckle, wrapping an arm around her waist to assist her in her stubborn persistence.  
"Come now, eternal princess. You are safe"

.  
.

The hallway lights were dimmed when she walked into the hotel room. She saw his sketches thrown on the floor, his charcoal flung over his sheets. _He had sensed something was wrong.  
__**  
**_She remembered the anger that pooled in his eyes when she had hit the ground right before him with a resounding thud.  
She could hear the echo of his threat, it still floated through her _do not touch her, or I promise you a most painful death._ There was an element of protection she has never seen him show before. She opened the fridge in hope to find some whisky, what she found was much more appealing.  
"Blood bags."  
"I told you," he says from behind her, "I got them from the hospital."  
She gave an incredulous smirk, "Okay," he breathed against her cheek, "_stole_."  
He brushed her hair from her neck to inspect the dart wounds – the vervain had certainly slowed down the process of healing – fingers tentatively running over the blemish. She winced under the gentle touch.  
"It'll be okay," he told her, "The shower is running, you go get cleaned up and I'll heat up some blood."

"Thank you," Caroline reached behind her to unzip the dress, her bones quivering.  
Klaus gripped her wrist and placed them down at her side, "allow me," his heated hands warmed her through the fabric. Even when the dress was open and her smooth milky flesh was exposed, he didn't linger, instead, gentleman that he could be, stepped away. And handed her a fresh towel.

The warm water showered her in a luxurious serenity. Sadly, it didn't take long for the aftershock to shimmer its way to the front of her thoughts.  
Specifically the face of the man whose neck _she _snapped. Before they poisoned her, before Klaus came to her aid.  
She killed a man, and no matter how much she tried to remind herself he came after her, the guilt wrung her throat– tightening her into desperation.  
_I killed somebody. Again. _

Klaus surfed though the channels, looking for something Caroline may enjoy. He recalled a re-run of 'gossip girl' to be playing later tonight. _Culturally deprived_. He thought snidely. Refraining from laughing, in case she might scare from it.

The arms of the clock struck midnight and still she had yet to come out.  
He pressed his ear to the door and gently knocked "Caroline? Sweetheart?"  
Silence met his cheek, so he creaked the door open.  
His face was etched with concern and sorrow when his eyes fell on her; curled into the corner of the shower.  
"Caroline?" he said from his place at the door.  
The shivering girl refused to raise her eyes, "I killed someone"  
"Dear heart." the way he said it, like a plea – _don't do this to yourself_.

She was stiff, like the strings of a violin. But, her voice is no longer melodic – instead a screech of pain.  
"I – I killed somebody… I just snapped his neck – how could I d...do-do that" she was completely broken now. Crumbling before his very eyes.  
Klaus took the towel in his hand, stepping into the shower and kneeling beside her to drape it across her shoulders – to conceal her bare flesh, lest she realize that she wore nothing. Hesitantly, he sat by her, letting the water run over them both. And that's all he could do for a moment, all so wasn't alone.

"Did you hear about the woman that used an axe to kill her husband? He went mad and believed it was his duty to kill his family, so- his wife, grabbed the first thing she had access to and started hacking, all blood and bone and tendons covering the walls of – "  
Her head snapped up, mascara running black tears down her pale skin, "please stop"  
"My point is, Caroline… sometimes in life, there will be times where you are thrown into a situation and a choice must be made." He twisted slightly to look at her, water drops running down his angled face. "What you faced today, my warrior princess – was self preservation. _Humans_, too, are inclined that way."

"But Klaus, you don't understand, she inched closer, "I _enjoyed _it."  
He brushes a calloused thumb over her cheek; eyes linger on her lips before they rose to hold her tear-filled ones.  
It's the look he gives, the weight of knowledge one can only acquire from years of experience that captures Caroline's attention. But it's his words that send a chill down her spine, yet somehow ease her all the same,  
"That comes with our nature, love."  
He pulled himself up when her sobs dispelled into silence and steps out of the shower – her broken kingdom, turning to look at her with an obscenely omniscient thought, "soon you will grow to understand that."

**TBC**

* * *

Ok, so I worried a lot about this one, Klaus' came off fairly soft in this and though I am trying to bring dynamic to his ridiclously complex personality, I want to do it right!  
Nonetheless I hope you enjoyed.  
Any thoughts? Like? Dislikes? Criticism?  
ps, Im hanging for the Klaus and Caroline scene in 4x07!


	5. Chapter 5

**Come for a drink, my love. **

.

.

.

_Her heated breath spiraled in the sinfully crisp November air, making the hybrid man appear like nothing more than a silhouette of a mortal being before her._

_It's' a silent offer – deliciously alluring._

_Her feet moved forward and there was not a single part of her that faltered. She craved it beyond reason, with his angelic blue eyes holding her heart in a steady beat, watching her make a decision all her own._  
_Her lips are but a kiss away from the bleeding neck, she looked to Klaus one more time before she made the choice – one that would alter the path she walked for the rest of her existence._

_How did she get here?_

* * *

They stood by the car, a map unfurled on the hood.  
"Well, where do you think we should go?"

"Love, the decision is completely yours" Klaus leant against the Mustang, bathing in her fierce beauty.

"Yeah, but you have been here, like, a gagillion times, help me out. Which place would I enjoy most?"  
"Tell you what," he smiled, pulling himself up to take her scarf from around her neck,  
"What are you doing?" she stammered as she moved backwards.

His grin widened – alight with boyish charm, "easy" he chuckled, hands held in submission. Closing the distance between them once more, "I'm not going to hurt you." He reached out to unweave the stylish loop at her neck – eyes anchoring her in place.

She shivered when the fabric glided over the sensitive arch of her flesh – leaving her unusually bare.  
Klaus' eyes lowered and lingered on the subtle throb at her neck, concealing his amusement with a tight smirk, knowing her heart palpitated in nervousness – one he was accountable for.

He raised his eyes to meet hers under heavy lids, "turn around," he murmured. Low and authoritative.. "Why?" she blinked, holding her delicate hands against her chest, to better protect herself.  
His fingers rested on her shoulders – heavy and warm, urging her to turn with gentle force.

"Trust me," he whispered against the shell of her ear, with her back now to him.

"This decision will rest solely with you," He said as he brought the scarf across her eyes. She froze, the gentle rush of his voice tickling the line of her jaw, teasing her, keeping her in line.

He tied a knot at the back of her head, trailing his hands down the length of her arms, until they rested at her hips. The touch – tender, utterly powerful, made the hairs of her arms stand on end.

"I'm going to spin you now," he warned, awaiting an incredulous remark from the golden princess.  
"One…"  
"This is ridiculous." But she smiled. Twirling on her feet.  
"Two."  
He gave her one last tug, making her floral dress spin in the summer breeze. "Three."

Her laughter was uncontrollable and it floated around them as she crashed into his hard body. Balance having fled her restraint.  
Her palms rested over his chest, where it was supposed that life rested. A melody played there – one that perhaps only their souls shared.  
She felt like a child, playing make believe with an imaginary friend. But no one would believe that she could have made such a friend as this.

But, that was just it. This man – who brought to her a life she had only ever dreamed of – couldn't be anything more than some figment of her imagination. She had seen the ugliest side of him. Been a victim of his wicked schemes.  
Oscar Wilde's words resonated in the most intelligent part of her mind; _a man cannot be too careful in the choices of his enemies. _And though it was true and displeasing, she could feel the wall steadily coming up around her once more.

He guided her back to the car. His hands cradling her forearms. Walking her forward with the reassuring pressure of his chest against her back, so that she existed only in the circle of his embrace. Then, his breath fanned the curve of her cheek.

"Lets' see what destiny has in store for us,"

With bated breath, he let her hand hover over the parchment, leaving the rest to her.  
"There," she said. Finger marking the spot… where their treasures would perhaps be found.  
With the young vampire still prisoner, held against the car and Klaus' stalwart arms, he looked down at her with devastatingly striking eyes, "Santa Cruz, it is then."

Her heart fluttered and then she felt it. Like, there was a penny in the air flying, flying – but it was falling somewhere quite out of her reach – into an abyss. She wondered, with a shudder, where it would fall.

* * *

It was a pathetic attempt but she needed answers. This desire made her brush valorous fingers over his jacket. Digging them into the pockets until a certain wooden stake came into her grasp.

She looked over to the petrol station, quickly snapping a picture of the ancient ruins that decorated the weapon while he fussed over ice cream.

_Try to send me the stake, Caroline. It may help us better understand its history. Who it came from, what power it contains. It will bring us one step closer to putting him down. _

Caroline decided that a picture was her best option for the time being, Bonnie would have to wait for the original product. Though, there had to be a reason, a very specific reason why Klaus chose to travel with the stake within his immediate reach. She only hoped that Bonnie could decrypt the message.

* * *

"For a millennium, humans would pass right by these islands. Many sailors would deem them shadows of the mist, as they were embraced by the sea fog that rose to simmer above the water's surface."

Caroline listened as Klaus dove into the history of the mysterious islands, with their own unique selection of fauna and array of colorful foliage.

"It wasn't until an Irishman, by the name Patrick Watkins was put ashore in Floreana. Elijah stayed with him for his own explorations. Though you wouldn't ask anyone about a man willingly- depositing himself on an island that, once, had no use." He offered his hand as he climbed over a boulder to assist Caroline.

"Can't we just run to the top? You know, vampire style? This West Cliff drive is meant to be that. A drive."  
She took his invitation without hesitation, and pulled herself up.

"Now," he began when she found her footing, taking the bag off her shoulders to sling it over his, "why would we cheat, when there's so much to see?" The barest of satisfactions reached Caroline's lips.  
"So Elijah was one of the first people on these islands?"

"You could say that. He adopted a certain adoration for discovery. He remained discrete. Compelled dear old Patrick and later even insisted Charles Darwin would forget they ever knew him."  
"He knew Charles Darwin?!"

Klaus stooped low to pick up a stick, fancying the idea of using it on their trek uphill.  
"Yes."

"Unlike my brother Kol, Elijah was, in every way inscrutable. In order to hide the truth of our existence. Lest danger would find a place in our family. Particularly where Rebekah was concerned."

"You all seem to worry a great deal about your _sister._"

There was a pressing matter weighing on his tongue, but he swallowed it down and continued forward. Trudging a few feet ahead of her.  
The West Cliff walk was in every aspect breath taking. Klaus would watch Caroline with amiable eyes as she ventured a guess on the name of a plant, based on its colour, its leaves.  
Klaus later taught her, _scent_is one of the most effective ways to determine what flower she held in her manicured fingers.

He was admiring of the look of concentration and determination that consumed her.

"Silver leaf." He spoke from besides her, fingering the blossom.

He opened the flower, exposing a yellow centre, "though concealed, the birds will always find their way to food. After all, without sustenance there is no life."

when she remained silent, Klaus spoke up once more.

"It's amusing, that all know of its secret – veiled in this deviously appealing form of beauty – and yet, it still attempts to hide away the truth."

Caroline's fingers released the flower, letting the wind take it for its own.  
She cursed herself, revolted by her nauseating need to _know_. She raised her eyes into his almost feral ones.  
She stood and he followed.

"Klaus – "

"Even when you think you have hidden something exceedingly well, it will always be found out." He walked steadily towards her as he spoke. A predatorily glide.  
There came a gleam in his eye as she started backward.

She was running out of ground, the heel of her foot kissing the edge of the cliff. A steep voyage down and a jagged, rocky death waiting below.  
"Klaus," her voice hitched. She instinctively reached for his arm, groping for safety. Gravity pulled her downward.

Vampire or not, flying was not a skill she had come to master.

Klaus swiped her flailing arm away, death clung to her chest. He gripped her shirt and held his arm out. Her body dangled perilously, her feet barely touching the ground. Just one push and...

"To be deceived so blatantly," he continued, "when all one has done is be civil," he shook his head, "could I be blamed for what is to follow?"

"Klaus," every muscle was painfully tense. "Klaus, what are you doing?"

"Making a point," he answered. Her struggle was nothing more than a breeze against his hairline.  
He inched closer, peeking over her shoulder to see what awaited her below.  
Caroline slipped, and in that moment she had never felt more pitifully human. _Weak_.

"Klaus." Her nails dug into his forearms. Clamping onto him desperately.  
"The slightest movement and you're dead," he said, before resting his sea-born eyes on her. She was caught in a rip.

"You know better than to disturb a sleeping bear, I'm sure." Loose pebbles plummeted down and away from beneath her toes, disappearing from view. Would she be next?

"Klaus, please." Tears began to bud in the corners of her eyes. "_Please_."

His jaw clenched when a tear dropped onto the back of his hand, like a wilting diamond.

A moment passed, slowly and completely within his control, until he pulled her back onto the safe ground with him.

She thought that it was almost like the time he led her onto the dance floor. With his _alpha male_pride. Except on this occasion, it was not with the promise of a better future. Rather, a warning full of empty threats that seemed much too real for her to wager her life on.

"You know," Klaus turned to the silver of her voice; she glared up at him and channelled all of her _control freak_ mannerisms into her posture, "maybe all this paranoia is a true reflection of just how _alone_you know that you are."

She expected him to throw her over the edge then. To pick up a measly twig and dig it into her heart.

She was far more startled when his lips stretched into a smirk that slithered under her skin.

He extended a hand out to her, "still got a long journey ahead of us, Caroline."

* * *

_When he offered his hand one evening, she had no choice but to take it._

"What are you playing at Klaus?" Caroline asked. Suppressing a shudder when he pulled her to the fence.

"Wait for it." Klaus whispered. "The transition from day to night is undoubtfully one of the most phenomenal events to witness. And what makes it so incredible, is that it is given to us from something ordinary." Caroline looked out onto the water. Trying to find the distinct line that separated it's stillness from the sky in the horizon.  
But the colours bled together, the shades that swim and ripple under the now evening light.

"Nature."

– He nodded, and looked back out to the view, he is itching to paint. A certain golden presence to inspire him all the more. –

And was he right.  
It was a magnificent sight. It was untouched and glorious and… peaceful.

"It's hard to think the mist would cover these islands up so thoroughly."  
Klaus' smile is all but mirthful.

"It's peculiar, don't you think". He leaned against the barriers, his shoulder brushing hers, "How easy it is to miss something that is there, standing right before our very eyes?"

The solemnity of his gaze was no longer frightening – it reminded her of the serene water below. Kissed my Silverlight.

Wings fluttered against the hollowness of her chest, a bird trying to perch itself somewhere. Somewhere that was supposed to be unreachable for a man like him.

A man of secrecy, deviancy.

A man of kindness and _longing_.

She was at peace when she heard the flight of a penny, soaring through the sky. And this time. She knew where it would fall.

* * *

The sky's pearl hung high in the inky night. Showering light across the earth they walked.

The skin of the lake danced, as if fairies decided tonight was the night to be found. A milestone for all who had ever held dreams dear. Revealing their existence to the world. Or perhaps only Caroline's world, a world where Klaus was so much more than the devil in disguise.

"Good evening, miss" a faint voice caused Caroline to ward off the innocent.

_Innocence no longer exists for mankind, let alone monsters. Children and animals are the only ones left who are deserving of such a magnificent gift as that. _

His words drifted into obscurity as she watched the man who used to plague her with nightmares and lather her in disgust when his flesh brushed hers, with curious eyes and in an invigorating anticipation.

"My friend and I are currently involved in a dispute as to where we should eat," the woman, with a shy smile and fluttery eyes, answered in full, "well there are restaurants that are sure to please the both of you. What mood are you in?"

A lingering once over, "I could think of something." Klaus spoke.  
She flustered, "well - "

"you will not scream - it will all be over soon," as calmly as he whispered the words, Klaus lowered his head to the sensitive curve, laying his lips against her pulse.

Caroline shivered when she heard the careful tear of flesh beneath his fangs. He drank his fill, slowly, letting each draw of blood overflow and revive his vampirism.

His black cloak whipped around his knees, the collar folded up to hide away the feral beast of his true form. Golden eyes looked over at Caroline from the crook of the woman's neck.  
Crimson petals trailed down the corners of her captor's mouth that held no expression.

She wondered if his facial hair would catch his nights feed. Wondered, if she was to step into his space to lick away the blood that coated his cheek like a primordial war tale, would her own flesh be stained in the same way?

He didn't speak, simply stepped away. Only slightly. Keeping the woman against him.  
He held out his meal to the sleeping beauty he has been meaning to awaken.

Caroline could not bring her eyes away, the aroma was far too tantalizing to ignore.

Her blue eyes looked from the wound - where Klaus' mouth had just been - to his glowing irises. _Whatever your heart desires and it shall be yours._

Her heated breath spiraled in the sinfully crisp November air, making the hybrid man appear like nothing more than a silhouette of a mortal being before her.

It was an unspoken offer – deliciously alluring.

Her feet moved forward and there was not a single part of her that faltered. She craved it beyond reason, with his angelic blue eyes holding her heart in a steady beat, watching her make the decision all on her own.  
Her lips were but a kiss away from the bleeding neck.

His head tilted to the side, the moons shadow draping itself languorously across his face. Still, despite the darkness she could see the blood staining his lips.

She stepped in for the feed.

* * *

[' _It's the river of blood  
That flows down a dark and red stream']_

It was a cloying taste of sweet satisfaction. It was addictive and unfathomably intoxicating. A carnal sin of desire.

"Easy, love. You'll bleed her dry."

Caroline physically relaxed when Klaus' hand touched the back of her neck.  
An order without the requirement of words when he gently pulled her away to catch the woman's eyes once more.  
"You will forget this."  
He bit into his wrist sanctimoniously, urging the woman to drink.

When their ignorant victim's figure merged with the town lights, Caroline didn't recoil when the hybrid turned to face her. the lights breeze whistling through his tousled hair.  
Klaus walked forward, supposing that she would retreat at any moment, but the grin he wore at the sight of her stillness heated her to the very core.

"Hello, my sweet." He cooed, playing the part of a long lost lover.

He took her face between his hands and ran his thumb over the lush plumpness of her bottom lip. Spreading the blood she wore so tremendously, before bringing it away, and sucking the digit clean.

This close to him and she knew he is all lean muscle. Agile and fluid - truly a wolf in disguise.  
Did that make her little red? Wandering into dangerous grounds, asking questions –

what big teeth you have

– that would inevitably lead her to an outcome that had been perilously neglected in the fairytale? Where the wolf answered with hungry eyes and a seductive voice

_all the more better to eat you with my dear - _

and in this fairytale, where she took his hand in the depth of a forest that no other could reach, he would do just that. Drink her dry of all her morals. Drink away the humanity she held onto like a tainted trophy.

He'd turn her, she was sure of it, into the monster that lurked in the shadows of everyone's heart. Leaving a trail of bread crumbs – not so she could be saved, oh no. The people following the trail would need the saving.

Was she already that monster? If she has taken his hand that he held out like a groom, to lead her into darkness -she would rule as fires' wife.

There, in the south wing – by their feet, a penny fell to the floor.

**TBC**

* * *

O.K. This chapter was a little different to the end product you see, but after watching last weeks episode, I felt an urge to rekindle the fiery rage that Klaus has brewing deep inside him. So if it was a let down, I apologize.

But, drop a review if you will. Let me know the good and the bad to this chapter, what improvement I could make towards this fic.  
Thanks for reading, and cry with me... I truely do NOT know how i am going to survive without a dose of Vampire diaries! JAN 17TH IS MUCH TOO FAR AWAY!


	6. Chapter 6

**Shall I howl a song for the wounded?  
**

**.**

**.**

**.**

In the sky above, deep, dark and blue, I see a star. Darling, do I see you?  
It urges a smile.  
A Heartbreaking gesture.  
Because, you calm the race of a heart in turmoil and bring another to a new pounding life of uncontrollable pleasure.

Is it even possible, that when their eyes locked, his smile - the slow formation of dimples - can do both things to her ever-beat-less heart?

* * *

_There is a land, a certain time, that is the birthplace to all supernatural entities that inhabit the world.  
Immortal creatures, with beat-less hearts and familiar eyes have wandered the lands- big and small. They, unlike we, will witness the change of behavior – they will laugh at its repeat._

_Witches. Humans were right to seek them out, to punish them for their artful destruction. Their creation of death._  
_But, we were too late. Our discovery of the black form had not come soon enough. A man, a warlock, and his mistresses crafted darkness and plunged the world into chaos._

Caroline's face paled. The scroll shivered in her fingers – humming the echo of fear that had radiated off the druid who had written this piece. If a druid, a status of imperious mystical power, feared the new-evil he wrote of, she wondered, just how dangerous can _she_ really be?  
How much influence does she have on the balance of life?

And more importantly, where does Klaus' mystery dagger fit into all of this?

* * *

_'Caroline, dear.' Klaus peeked up at her in apology. 'I'm afraid I require a quick visit to Ireland, there are certain matters that I am obliged to attend to.'_

She had absolutely no complaints in the matter. Rather taking the opportunity to undertake her own task – learn more of the item fastened in the waistband of Klaus' jeans.

The inspector façade she has thrown on now must be surrendered, she realized with some dismay. Klaus would be finished soon and if she kept his royal-ass waiting for too long, Klaus would endeavor to find a thrilling fix.

She dazzles the CEO of mythical involvement to forget her existence. (read: don't bother looking for it, it's not meant to be seen by the likes of you).

She recited the Druids lines over and over. Tried to shelf away her thoughts into alphabetical compartments.

But, what she really needs is to talk to Bonnie. Attain assistance in deciphering the history – pin pointing their next lead. She wants _this_ – all of this double-life crap – finished.

She wants Tyler's lips – at least the reassuring pressure of safety fluttering over her lips. Wants the silence that embraces you when in the arms of your lover.  
_  
She wants blood._

The stark thought of red stunned her, makes the girl roll her shoulders in revulsion when the thought lead to crystal-blue eyes and a devilish accent waltzing in the midst of her darkness.

Klaus seems to be creeping into her thoughts much too easily nowadays.

* * *

The space is thick with cigar smoke and drunken words that flit and mould together – becoming a humming sort of cacophonous tune. Klaus pulled out a chair beside him, her presence gracing a table encircled with men.

_"Clonmacnoise is a beautiful site isn't it?" _

Caroline nodded absentmindedly, barely registering what one of the men asked. She was focused on another table-mate; with dark brown hair and endless green eyes that seemed, she thought, to have the odd familiarity of escape.  
_Have a nice day.  
_A foreboding chill ran down her spine at the eerie – déjà-vu vibe crackling over her flesh. Like the march of ants.

Upon observation, Klaus gently coaxed her away from the uncanny thought running rampant through her mind; fingers barely grazing the flesh over her knuckles. "Are you alright, sweetheart?"

For a brief moment, Caroline forgets who sits by her and twines her fingers through his, looking up at him past her thick frame of lashes. She can sense the timid expectation that holds him back.  
He's positive she will retreat at any point, snatch her hand away from his and sacrifice him to the lonely pits of his hell once more.

Instead her lips barely twitched into a feeble smile, and then she squeezes his hand back, "I'm ok."

_Rejection has always banished him into the high tides of disillusionment and a lonesome eternity. An abyss he has fallen into – much too deep to ever escape._

He never believed that – to have trust colouring the shade of her blue eyes – could have this effect on him.  
To throw him into a hurricane, he can barely contain himself, and yet, still breathe all the same.

* * *

All through the night they laugh with the company that had much to say in so little time.  
Klaus knew they had to leave and soon.

But, the way she snorted when she could barely repress a fit of laughter to fall from her lips, meant that his schedule eventually subsided and so he draped his arm across the back of Caroline's chair and enjoyed the early lulling hours of morning.

He ordered rounds of drinks for the table, sneaking a peek at Caroline whenever he thought she wouldn't notice, (she did) and even offered to buy her potato chips. A gesture he later came to regret when an hour discussion arose in regards to the pronunciation of the word 'potato.'

"Ay ay, matey. You are in our land now." One of the blonde boys quipped.  
"None o'that American crap o'er ere." Another gentlemen added before raising ogling eyes at the young vampire, "no ma'er how beautiful one is."

"Well, I have a British accent and we pronounce it 'pota'oes." Caroline's escort deflected with an amused expression. Laughing wildly when one of the dark haired men grunted, "don' get me star'ed on the brits."

* * *

"Excuse me, sir" Klaus craned his head back to a woman with dark curly hair. "There is someone on the line for you."

"I'll be back." Its' a warning- an order, not a request. She's become attuned to distinguishing the difference. "Gentlemen," Klaus spoke as he pulled himself out, "play nice."

"So," one of the men good-naturedly drawls. "What compelled you to join the infamous Klaus Mikaelson?" she chooses to remain ignorant on the emphasis of 'compelled' and offers a guileless smile.

"He was very… convincing."

"Ah." They all chime in unison.

"You know, we must offer unto you our respect, for somehow challenging his assertion."  
She tilts her head with an obstinate will.

"Well, presumably you knew Klaus long before you decided it appropriate to venture out into the world with him. Are we right?"

"Well, yes." She mutters. Fingers fisted on the table. _Just relax. They cannot possibly know._

Caroline snuck a few illegal glances at the man that holds the key to her freedom. Quickly flitting them away when he would catch her under hooded eyes.

_He is a smart man, Caroline Forbes_ they tell her.

_His scrupulous methods never seize to amaze everyone he meets _they explained with little conflict.

But, here is something they don't know. And something that frightened her – an act of kindness that escaped the labyrinth. _There is more to you that meets the eye. Not even you, Klaus, want to see it._

She captured his eyes, and when neither of them averts their gaze, some heavy form of nervousness settles in her chest. Because when he looks at her _that_ way, like there is nothing else in the world, _but her_, he completely obliterates her will. Tears pieces from her restraint._  
_  
Klaus should be heeding the warning delivered by the voice on the line, but the thousand-year-old-man is entranced by the way she enthralls him. The look of a thousand touches, she gives. A gateway to something more than hateful words and cruel remarks.

"He doesn't take to betrayal lightly."

Caroline's blood ran cold. Just as the men spoke their words, there was a shift in Klaus' gaze. A nightmare crafted from a phantom voice speaking on the other line.

Klaus' eyes darkened, lips pursed into a thin line and then… the lock is severed.

* * *

_It's like a raging ocean, cruel and endless and ever-consuming_

Klaus' gaze becomes a sharp-sour leer before he replaces the phone. He saunters over and for a wild – excruciating moment, Caroline believes he has caught on. She has met her end.

"Time to go."

The men become hesitant, shying from the caustic rumble of Klaus' voice. It's unctuous, sitting heavy like the swirl of cigar smoke.

"But, I want to stay here." She channeled all her doe-eyed appeal into her voice. Eyes twinkling adorably in the lamplight. _Play it cool Caroline.  
_It doesn't work.

His response is firm, laced with order, "We'll come back."

"Promise?" she looked up to him, heartbreakingly hopeful.

One of her acquaintances probes her shoulder, a warning – a request she tread lightly. _He doesn't take to betrayal lightly. _  
She's drowning in their eyes – all measuring her with a miniscule dose of apprehension, a hefty weight of concern. If they fear her life so tremendously, should that not, itself, promise danger?

Klaus smiled, parasitic in its agenda, before placing his hand over her waist. His touch utterly controlled.

"Promise."

* * *

The city lights of Tokyo would make one believe the entire world was illuminated by the colours of pure imagination.

She grinned when the colours glazed and blurred by her. She used to dream about this, as a child. Of what it would be like to drown herself in what the world might be like in a few one-hundred years.  
Catch a glimpse of it in the futuristic city of Tokyo.

Then she remembers with urgency, she _will_ see the world and what it will become.

"I'm in Tokyo," Caroline said mindlessly.

Klaus twisted his neck to look at her, "that you are, love."

With an avaricious excitement she had never really known – _after all_, she realized, _I'll be cheating time and death over and over again_ – she places a hand on the window and said, "and there is only a sheet of glass separating me from it."

Already sitting by her, he moves closer – the heat from his body setting off a fire through her system. But, it's when his fingers rest over hers, gingerly, tentatively, that she notices, she and he are the fire entwined.

"Not too long now." He whispered against her. "Not too long, before everything becomes yours."

It's a frightening thought and enlivening all the same. She closes her eyes and hums the old tune once more. Tries to wash away his rippling presence, until all she can hear is the song itself.

It works. For now.

* * *

_They're a Kaleidoscope of good and bad moments – smiles rimmed with hatred, laughter charged with a devout enjoyment for the other that is beyond moral boundary. There is a constant push and pull between these two ageless beings. It leaves them aching, battered and bruised._

Klaus sauntered around the room, nothing but his black jeans hanging loosely over his hips to conceal his form, "I'll be in the shower."

She hears the water surge to life and, against all her will (or what little of it she has left) she lets her mind wonder to what the steam envelops. What body the gush of water lathers.

There's an incessant flicking in the deepest part of her chest. It's persistent and ever-nerve-wracking. Worsening with each moment that passes with Klaus locked in the bathroom. She's forgotten something.

And in a moment of complete silence, it dawns on her in waves of terror.

_The herbs!__  
_  
She surges into the bathroom, all rational thought having fled her judgment, the moment she remembers where she has stashed the herbs Bonnie had given to her months ago.

"Caroline, love. What are you doing?" Klaus' voice travels the tendrils of steam.  
"Ahh, just looking for my lipstick," her voice wavers. "And you're taking too damn long!" she added once the hash fell into her purse.

The tap squeaks to a close - as did Caroline's heart.  
She quickly zipped her purse shut.

He stepped out of the shower, a towel tied across the narrow breadth of his hips. Water dripped from his messy golden locks before they voyaged down the length of his neck, onto to the broad expanse of his chest, before teetering across the lines of his stomach, disappearing behind the white line of his towel. It pulls her into a breathless trance.

"It's rude to stare, sweetheart." Klaus spoke, a delightful tune lilting in his voice. Caroline slightly jolted out of her hypnotized state.

She scoffed, rolling her eyes for good measure, "don't flatter yourself."

Klaus ginned, palming the hair at his cheek, "what do you propose, shall I shave?"

"Well," she inched closer, facing the mirror to catch his reflection, "I've always liked you with stubble."  
He side-eyed her, though she refused to do the same, instead watched him watch her. And, my, was it a peculiar sight.  
To really take notice of how he simply looks at her, breathes her in. Like there is _something _there others don't quite see. Something not even she, can see. At least, not yet.

"Stubble it is then." he said.

He leant across her to take up his toothbrush, scavenging for remains of toothpaste clinging to the plastic of the tube. Running it under water before bringing it to his mouth.  
Caroline's giggle is far less restrained than she'd hoped.  
Inquisitively, he raised his eyebrows.

"I'm sorry," she brings her hand to her lips, tries to hone in her amusement. Lest she fall into this far-too surreal air of normalcy, one day it would drain and suffocate her completely with its deceiving properties.

"It's just, I mean - the big bad, brushing his teeth. It's so, I can't even…" she clasped her hand over her mouth, muffling her amusement. Swiping away at eager tears.

He smiled with the toothbrush in mouth, before looking back into the mirror to run the bristles over his teeth that conceal his fangs.

"Dear Heart," he wipes away the foaming mess at his mouth. Bending low to open the cupboard – an innocent movement – that despite its lack of herbs – makes her dead heart race.

He looked up; reminding her he had begun to speak. "I _was_ human once."

It's an honest reminder - but it makes her grow pale - for a moment, she believed he still was.

* * *

He gripped his cologne and put it on the counter by her hip. Why is she still standing there?

Running a hand through his damp hair, he murmured absentmindedly, "I'm expecting a phone call"  
"From who?"  
"Whom." He corrected with a slight tip of his head, before answering, "Just an informant, love."

"Was it the same person who called you in Ireland?" she ventured for ignorance, but the shift in his gaze promises certain death.

_Locked and loaded, now one will pull the trigger._

She holds a breath, heart having fallen to the pit of her stomach. Squirming when he gives a terrorizing grin, a pirate walking her down the plank to meet her awaiting companion, death, below.

"They would probably remind me of what was warned."

He faces her now, eyes twinkling dangerously, "To keep my eyes open for any sudden…revelations."

Her world slipped out of focus when he leant forward, pressing one hand against the sweating tile wall beside her shoulder, his lips are barely a whisper away from the beginning of her cheekbones.

She can feel the heat radiating off of him. Though, she's positive, the residue of shower steam has already dispersed into nothing. _This _heat, the over-drive of fierce sensations rippling through her nerves, is almost like a ferocious fire she has never experienced. Its' lapping tongues of flame lick across her flesh. Submerging her into an agonizing heat of sinful desire. A petrifying vortex of near death. That somehow, oddly feel the same.

With the height of his lean frame, her chin is leveled with his chest, she instinctively backs into the wall.  
Achingly slow, Klaus' still-damp-arm grazed the side of her breast reaching for something just -

"What are you doi – "

The grin that mars his features, this time, makes her shiver. It's all teeth and power and _omniscient_.

As his arm had stretched behind her, he pulls it away. Lets the touch of their flesh linger, squinting when she doesn't oppose. The hybrid beast brings his hand between their chests, a blue shirt fisted in his fingers, "don't flatter yourself." His voice is low and guttural.

Then, like the streamer of disgust that whistles through your chest, she wonders, why he won't. Why he won't just take her, surely he can see the voracious effect he strings her with. And yet perhaps, she too, cannot see the way she troubles him. Slips into his bloodstream with just the quirk of her brow.

It seems that's their thing. The consistent push and pull. _The_ _chase_.

The unrelenting ability to make their partner think they know the other person and yet stumble with a dilatory realization there is still so much more to learn.

* * *

_The night brings with it a new centre stage for their 'End Curtain'. And my, what an ending it is._

A Karaoke Bar.

Caroline whirled around, a band of threats at her tongue, but an empty space is met, "…Klaus?"

"Caroline," Klaus directed her over to a booth, the eyes of almost every girl on him. _Almost!_  
She ambled over to it and slid in, awaiting (or rather dreading) his company.

Her fingers drummed the sleek black table, graciously thanking the waitress that sets two drinks down. Drinks fit for spiking. Hidden in the intoxicating appeal of whiskey. Caroline quirks her head to the side, feigns disinterest as her eyes flickered over to her subjugator. Finding him in an distracting discussion. She finds her window.  
So she takes it.

"Wouldn't get comfortable, love" Klaus hums, fitting himself by his formidable falcon. Caroline twitched; relieved to know her Herbs found their place in her bag once more. _Now it's a waiting game. _

_Keep up the charade – remain unaffected, _She pulled her brows together, "… Why?"

"Up next, we have a … Caroline Forbes!"

"Don't look so nervous, Caroline," he sits back – smiling with boyish charm as her fingered the rim of his glass. "Doesn't suit you."

"Caroline Forbes?" The voice echoes through the populated joint. _Oh my fuck!_

She heard rather than saw the drag of a shot glass, filled with tequila, pausing by her elbows. She catches Klaus withdrawing his hand, a suggestive pull of his lips. An indicative raise of his brows. _I dare you. _

She held a breath as he plucked up his cup."Such a utilitarian man, I see," she said, laden with spite, tinged with fright. He shrugged. "Only to settle the nerves, sweetheart. But I've compelled the dear old hostess to remain devoted upon insisting you grace the stage, accompanied, of course, by your teenage spunk."

"Seriously?!" He swallows his sip, before drawling (words dripping with sarcasm, while her heart rested in her mouth), "no, I'm joking."

She downed her tequila and then off she went.

Hey voyage to the stage is filled with the tune of her comfort, soothing her quaking heart.

She remembered doing this for Matt when it was she trying to court him. This sensation, with the man yearning for her affection is something far more enchanting.

She has belted out Celine Dion before, but that was in the comfort of the mystic grill, with familiar faces and with the familiar booths and the familiar drinks. This time she's sharing the experience with strangers. And a man, becoming more and more a friend than the enemy turned villain in his arrival back home…

_Home. _Where her room patiently sits – with everything untouched until she is ready, (no, allowed) to return_._

_Home._ Where bonnie and Elena and Stefan and even Damon continue to live, in the existence of her absence.

_Home. _Where Tyler and her shared so much more than _just_ a connection bound to forever.

The sudden nausea from her deprived freedom to go home, threatens her appearance – invoking her gag reflexes.

But then she looked up, past the white lights that blind her and scans the crowd – looking for the magnetic pull of something more powerful that vodka in a tip glass.

Looks for the fingers that tug the ropes bound across her wrist like flower petals. Like vice.

And then she finds him, a barely-there smile tugging at his lips, a soft puppy-wolf complexion measuring her stance.

_Just relax. Just have fun.  
_  
And then she realizes she's breathing again, the memories fading slightly – just so, that she can _enjoy_ the opportunity. He's her captor – he's her escape.

Then, the lights turn off.

* * *

_Define: Athazagoraphobia; The relentless fear of being forgotten- left to transpire into oblivion, unseen and worst of all, to forget yourself the things you hold dear._

"You were spectacular!" Klaus offers her the small compliment. Though, she barely acknowledges the gesture. Only gives a courteous smile, head hung low.

She becomes a saturnine shell of what she was a few days back in the oldest parts of Ireland. What she embodied upon the stage.  
"Caroline, my sweet." Klaus ducked his head to catch her eyes. Ones she averts expectantly. "What has you so despondent?"

"Is this the beginning?" She asked, seemingly to no-one. He remained silent. Waited for her to continue.  
"Is this the beginning of… is this where the tunnel starts? Leading nowhere but to darkness?"

Klaus straightens out, baffled – confused. _Was she not enjoying herself?_

Again he waits. Patiently, like he always does and always will. Forever.

"I've broken _so _many promises that I have made to myself. I – I've fed on humans – " Klaus opens his mouth, clamping it shut when she finally raised her eyes into his somber ones.

"I have allowed myself to, to…" She exhaled – a long, slow release. "I can feel myself becoming the, _creature_, I never wanted to be. Forgetting what tethers me to being human, forgetting the goodness that keeps us pure. I feel it's happening, slowly and quickly. I'm so scared that there will come a day, I've gone too far. I'm so scared that I will just," she wants him to see it, doesn't want to say it. But this is a hurtle she must first meet, before he takes her hand. "I don't want to fade into darkness."

When she's said what has been lingering on the tip of her tongue, she expected him to laugh at her fractured armory. To taunt her, chase her further into this dark-consuming grief that has had a sweet taste of this golden princess.  
Instead she finds a ghostly presence, an empty space and –

then her heart eased. A melody filtered the air – sweetening the taste that weighs on her tongue like bitter oil.  
It's soothing, familiar, the _same_.

The same tune she hums in the shower, the same tune she hums in her lonely estate when her thoughts stem from nightmares, becoming much too real to assume harmless.

The same tune, she finally remembers, her father used to sing to her as a little girl when draped in the innocence one only has in the youthful, naïve, unknowing days of their lives.

She finds him, curled over the guitar. The stage lights shine down on him, casting his almost-saintly face in shadows, accentuating the sharp angle of his jaw, the high set of cheekbones. Eyes blue like the deep cut of emeralds – glinting in the depths of a cyclone he crafts with his own two hands.

He does not sing, just lets his fingers strum the tight-stretch of stings, elicits the most gorgeous tune that swirls in the air around her. Caroline drinks up every note, hears her father's voice lilting in adoration as he tucked her into her safe-haven with only this song. This mere gift.

Everyone applauded, simple dazzled by 'Apollo and his golden lyre'. He pays them no attention, Niklaus only watches her, touches the guitar one last time and with nothing but strength in his eyes, he nods.

The lights switch on.

* * *

"You played my song." She barely uttered, lips atremble – like an anemone. "How-"

"Come with me," his fingers circle the bend of her arm, and unlike previous encounters, its soft and delicate.  
No trace of malice, no exertion of power.

Once they have made it outside, he cranes his neck backward – to high heaven – and points, "look."  
She gazes up into the 1:30 am morning sky. It's bleak and endless and she doesn't understand what he means until a small group of specs decorate the canvas.

"There needs to be a certain darkness in order to see the stars."

"And in a place like Tokyo where it's loud and congested and even over-bearing at times," He looks down at her, this vulnerable creature – craving for hope.

"The stars are always there, Caroline. Hidden in the depth of a darkness you so sadly fear." He scrunches his brows and steps forward, raising his fingers to graze her cheek. there are no pet names, this is all for _her_. "If there is no darkness, then no one can see the light. And, a smile like yours… well, that should be worn every day. I don't see how the world gets any light otherwise."

_The entire world, or is it just his?_

He gives her a sad smile. One that has just the right touch of shyness, it makes her toes curl.

It's a smile that would disgust and frighten and confuse everyone back in mystic falls. One that, if misused - could really promise the end of the world.

It's a gateway... a glimpse of his soul. With bashful eyes, he searched for an answer. He didn't prompt it - didn't force it, simply waited with bated breath for her to speak. Like he always did. For her alone.

Caroline stepped forward and her heart positively ached when Klaus mirrored her step, eyebrows etched in confusion. _Isn't it always she, that pulls away?  
_  
"What's wrong?"

His voice is soft - the lightness of a feather and she decided in a moment of contentment, that her hands would fit perfectly at the place of his chest. To feel the beat of his heart.

"Caroline," it's a demand for explanation, a plea for words... _what are you doing?_ His fingers circle around her wrist. They do just that. Hold her. Torn between the desire pulling her hand away, or crushing her to him.

She closes the distance between them and presses her lips to his.  
Tastes the alcohol - the burnt offering of his previous feed, dance upon her tongue. But, more fiercely, what she tasted- what she feels when his mouth opens underneath hers, is want.

He took a shuddering breath, the muscles in his jaws clenching. There's a raging battle; but in the end, desire trumps reason. His hands graze the flesh of her arms, taking her face between his long thin fingers – a certain starvation heating his flesh.

He swallowed the small moan that escaped her lips as he crushed her to the wall. Fumbled when her hands fisted the shirt at his chest when he pressed against her. hands searching, hips rolling.

Miss mystic, queen of the charity committee and all that jazz, sighed wistfully, as his lips trailed along the column of her throat– his hands roaming and _oh_.

Her voice, heavy with the scent of him, is barely above a whisper, "Klaus…"

Klaus, the monster, the hybrid… the _man,_ who's stolen so much more than her freedom, rested his head against her temple, pressing a firm kiss to her cheek, just by her lips. Smiling when she failed to control the ferocious stuttering of her heart that reaches forward.

They remained still, for a moment, until he pulled back slightly to brush a stray curl behind her ear. A fire dancing in his touch.

And then, with her heart in his hand, he lets her go.

**TBC**

* * *

I can't even describe to you guys how much this chapter killed my bloody life. The lack of time now that I am back into my studies was a curve ball enough. But my lack of incentive (i.e; writers block) drove me positively mad. But it's been a while since I have updated and felt like I should and, I donno, I'm just really sorry it didn't reach expectations! curse life and my inability to get back into the zone.

This was pretty much the stepping stone into the more 'graphic/descriptive' encounters they will have (if you get what I mean) and more importantly, we will be in Klaus' dreams/memories a little more, which I'm kinda looking forward to. Hopefully it won't be a repeat of this!

If you haven't given up on this fic and managed to get through this, leave a review - if you will. Let me know the good, the bad - please! I would enjoy feedback on what i could have done to bloody well made this piece better!  
other than that, hold out with me guys, Vampire Diaries is now two weeks away!


	7. Let the Past Loiter, Let it not Consume

**Let the past loiter  
Let it not consume**

.  
.

Especially when she holds the key to a cell of failed promises

* * *

Death

_: the total and permanent cessation of life. An ending – poetically irreversible.  
No one can return from this._

.

They can't. They can't!

Well, the Mikealsons did.

And oh, my. How the world has come to fear them; how lost these children have become.

* * *

_They made plans, these children – these boys and once golden girl – to swim in the river of darkness, set sail on the stars and voyage straight to the moon just in time to greet the sun._

_"We will lay our treasures there. A beacon with nothing but our secrets to flavor the scent of the air."_  
_Rebekah read the words of Elijah, when he and Niklaus were not behaving like such children, over the affections of a woman, no less. Tries to remember a time they were one, with nothing or no one tugging at their bonds._

_And for a moment she could feel the memory enveloping her sorrowful heart and smiled one of hope. There is time to mend the broken pieces._

_Fate however, wasn't so kind._

_There was a tear in the quiet serenity, and then the world turned to ruins. "Bekah!"_  
_The still-human-girl stood, "Nik?" He stumbled through the bushes, body weary and eyes crazed. When he had caught sight of his sister, a flicker of hope flared past, "Bekah," he gripped her arms, a warm texture soaked her material._

_"Nik, what in heavens…" He's covered in blood, body swollen and tender. Has father tormented you again?_

_"He killed Fin, Bekah." Klaus barely sounds human, more like a feral beast, cornered into a cage._  
_"He killed Kol. Bekah – you must run. Go, run!" He shoved her when she remained still and noticed only then the gash wound in his thigh._

_You tried to save them._

_"Rebekah." they jolted when their father's voice assaulted their senses. But the site of him did much worse._  
_He broke away the greenery of their sanctuary – infiltrated it, wearing his sons blood for accessories. In his hair, on his tunic and upon the blade of his sword. Glinting in the silver light._

_Niklaus extended an arm and pushed his sibling behind him. Barricading her from their father (now assailants) advances._

_"Father please, let her be." Klaus' voice was hoarse. But his sister shivered behind him. Heart beat fluttering in frenzy. He knew only one thing – he couldn't let her die like this._

_The man laughed at his greatest shames gallantry, pointing at his daughter, "come here, it'll be over soon."_

_"Bekah run," Klaus said more firmly, "now."_  
_He turned, shoving her with too-much force and howled, "Run!"_

_And so his sister fled._  
_She was always considered fast. But Mikael was faster. Inhumanly so._

_Rebekah cried out when the blade whisked against her back, tearing her garments, grunted when she fell to her knees at the assertion of her father's foot to her back. Mikael circled her and stood before the sobbing child._  
_"Papa, please."_  
_"This is for your own good." He explained._  
_"Have we done something wrong?"_  
_He lifted his weapon, achingly slow, "this is to save you, my child."_

_Defeated, she closed her eyes and waited for the strike._

_"No!"_

_She opened her eyes and found_

_his glazed over. Nik, the brother she adored, on his knees before her with a blade protruding from his chest; a canvas for his blood._

_"Nik?" He trembles, head falling to see what hurts him so painstakingly._

_"Boy! You were not meant to be a part of this!" Mikael tugged at his sword, but Klaus, in a useless attempt to give his sister time, clamped his fingers around the murderous tool. Hands slicing as he held on tight, keeping it lodged within him, "Bekah, please run." His words are coated red. Her heart breaking in two._

_She pressed the paper into his hand, believing he knew what it was. What it once meant to them. 'Family above all.'_

_The knife is torn out of him and he falls away, onto the ground and counts his sisters steps as she runs. A greater pain rests on his chest when a strangled voice cries out, "Niklaus,"_

_Elijah._

_The bastard body convulses when a small laugh breaks past his lips, "'Lijah." it's a sigh of relief, a thanks to the gods. The eldest boy knelt down beside his kid-brother. Pressing hands onto his chest – frantically tried to stop the bleeding._

_Niklaus' raised a hand and grips his brothers' wrists like he was afraid of letting go – being alone, "Save Bekah."_  
_Elijah's head snaps up, "where is she – is she still alive? Everyone else… Niklaus I –"_

_Klaus bites down, jaw clenching, "Elijah, please – save our sister. She's all that is left."_

_"I refuse to leave you."…Like I did before. There's regret lingering on their tongues, for the estranged people they became, but they saw it in the other's eyes._I am truly sorry_._

_"Bekah is alone. Go brother. Go." There was a storm raging in Elijah's eyes. A war he could not win. With a timorous breath, he let his brother go. One finger at a time._

_Klaus waited, unknowing that his veins were laced with his lovers blood. – A cruel fate that he and she endured. Only, one would remain unspoken; handed over to a place none can reach, and the other would remain damned to an eternity. Lonesome and forgotten. –_

_And before his very eyes, Bekah and Elijah fell to the ground. With beat-less hearts and empty eyes._

_Niklaus (the man he would never be again) drowned in his tears. Surrendered himself over when the paper in his hand was snatched away by the wind, fleeing from his grasp till it disappeared over the horizon, and in his last waking moment he realized, they'd never greet the sun again._

* * *

Caroline snaps awake, sitting up in a dark room. Heavy breaths filling the small apartment space.  
Heart beating rapidly, she turns to the side and sees Klaus laying beside her. Completely rested – deep in his slumber. Dreaming or plagued by nightmares – she's far too sure.  
_  
_… The herbs are working.

* * *

_This is what everyone will see_

A man with skies for eyes and a line of loaded threats for friends. A beast contained within the lean frame of this young lad, golden hair and perfectly manicured nails. None would believe a wolfs paws lay beneath. None would see the golden orbs belonging to a creature of the night, at least – not right away.

_It's precisely what he wants them to see_.

A human, soft-enough- looking to wager a friendship on; beautiful enough to lure in the weak… and the strong. Until, of course he snags them mid-oath, (they would've promised their allegiance to none other but the devil himself). They will come to fear the deceitful kindness he oozes with an itinerant accent.

_He relishes in it_. Their weakness. His power. _  
_  
Everyone sees exactly what he allows; what he crafts with his insightful wit and grotesque humor.

It's what everyone sees. Everyone… except Caroline. _  
_  
She's finding her heart no longer belongs to her own hand of command.  
His presence will conjure her dead-life to race, run and run and run. Because it's afraid of Klaus for a whole new reason. It trembles as his eyes soften when relieved of the pretenses, when hidden alone in the dark. (Not a soul to call a friend).

After all, a Klaus with a stone – black as burnt charcoal – for a heart, is terrifying enough.  
But a Klaus with glimmers of a soul long deceased – hidden somewhere beneath the façade, surely will destroy her.

Caroline looks into the mirror, somehow finding it difficult to find where she is. What has she done – where is she going? Letting herself fall into a labyrinth that her captor alters with every move she makes. Never moving forward, rather toppling into a pit.

Still, she would be lying if the fashion of France didn't cushion her thoughts. Let her doubts catch in the billow of her dress. A dress that fits snuggly to her waist, falling gracefully down her legs.

"Ah, Klaus?" she calls out nervously.

"Yes, love?" he answers, patiently sitting on the other side of the change-room door.

"Could you zip me up?" She creeks the door open and cranes her neck to find her escort.  
She tries to avoid the smile that mars her features at the sight of him; sitting on the chair, legs stretched out before him, back slunk against the wall. She has to admit, though boredom sits heavy in his words, he's lasted longer than Tyler ever did. Tyler would have bickered, adorably of course. Or even opted on sneaking into her change room to steal a moment of bliss.

Her cheeks redden, realizing, just who she has invited into a very private space, full of possibilities. Klaus steps in and the air, _no joke_, thickens when the door closes behind him.

"Caroline?"

"Yeh?" she begins to twirl her hair up so he can zip her dress closed.

"Are you feeling alright?" she raises her eyes to catch his in the reflective surface, curses her heart for its rapid dash.  
She sees his blue eyes, the same blue eyes, only a lifetime ago, losing count in the stars. Closing them forever, without kissing the sun good morning. _How terrible your life was. How horrid your ending._

She shakes away his dream… chases away his memory.  
_  
_"Yeh, of course I am… why?"

He's nervous, doesn't quite know how to handle her. So he simply slides his hands up, closing the dress – concealing her milk-white flesh. She flusters, realizes they haven't spoken of the kiss that he no doubt rakes through his mind with a fine-tooth-brush. It's been weeks and she's _waited_, (like the school girl she will forever be) for him to touch her. Quench the desire with a gentle kiss. A forbidden embrace.

"You seem to be… distant. I thought that maybe…"

"…what?" She murmurs, turning to face him; aware that all she has to do, for their chests to touch, is move her foot forward.  
And, my, how she wants to –

"Never mind." –

She steps back instead.

Turns around to face the mirror (hides the agitation beneath her own glass cases she has for eyes). Represses a scoff when she flattens out the blue dress over her hips.

"Is it two steps forward for us, and like, twelve steps back or something?"

When she looks up, she draws in a breath. He's close, _so close_. His chest presses against the curve of her spine, his lips whispering over the nape of her neck. And when he breathes, _god damn_, when he breathes – her entire body combusts.

Yet, he still doesn't _touch_ her, simply catches her eyes in the mirror. Standing close behind this child – this old soul. His suit is tailored to a perfect fit, a blue tie to compliment the severity of his blue eyes. Measuring her; like a falcon perched high on a branch, calculating its' kill.

It takes her a moment to realize he's responding to her quip with a dash wit, a dose of wonder.

"Well, aren't we a pair?"

* * *

"Stop laughing!"  
"I'm sorry!" Caroline continues to fold in on herself as laughter falls from her lips.  
Like sugar from a cup. He thinks. Syrupy… sweet.

But right now, he is not in the mood to pepper her with little delights like that.

"It's just-" she tries to wheeze the words between haggard breaths, " – you're a thousand year old vampire and – you haven't even – to this day… refuse…" tears begin to streak her face.

He cannot help but admire how she wears this look so perfectly.  
The epitome of beauty. _Genuine beauty_.

He looks down and eyes the French appetizers decorating his plate with a leering glare of revulsion. The moment juice oozes out of the shell he drops his fork in disgust.

"I'm not doing it," he throws himself back into his chair.  
She practically chokes on her own mouthful of cheese. Her melody filtering the air once more.  
"Are you serious?!"

She giggles, "you're scared... of a snail!?"

"I just don't think it's necessary to eat something that lives in a garden," he grates.  
"They're a special breed" she empathizes with a tight smile.

"They're snails!" he bites. "_Caroline_," he groans her name, eyebrows pulled together, "stop laughing."

"Why didn't you just get that beef stuff you like? What's it called again?"

"Garbure." He answers dejectedly before leaning forward with accusing eyes, "because _you_ insisted on trying everything on the menu and I completely forgot that Escargot– " he waves his hand at the plate "– existed."

"Come on, Klaus. Live a little," she wheedles.

"I've lived a thousand years, love" he explains pointedly. "I'd say I'm set."

"Well," she quips, "_I_ like trying _new_ things". Holding out an inviting hand he murmurs, "Well go on love. Have at it"  
"Ok" she chirps, reaching over to snatch a boiled delicacy from his platter.  
His lips twist in scrutiny. Eyebrows knitting in as he awaits her judgment.

"Wow" she chuckles "that-" she swallows, "is _nasty._"  
He rolls his eyes in exasperation. "I told you – " he stops short when she reaches for another.

"What?" she looks up past thick lashes "It's an acquired taste."

"You're impossible."

"Just try one" she pleads. He glowers at her before turning his head, "No."  
"And I'm the impossible one?" she moans. There's a short silence hanging between them, until a thought brightens her eyes.

"You know what else I like doing?" She asks suddenly. "Taking long hot baths," she purrs. "With a glass of wine. And then –" she smiles reaching over for his cup, tipping it back for a refreshing sip, "–_sleeping naked_."

His eyes widen in unveiled attention. "Who knows" she shrugs, taking another, _long_, _slow_ sip. "Maybe someone might join me." He sits up now, ready to comply. His lips twitching at the corners. "If you try one" she says quickly.

His face drops and he grates his teeth as her lips only pout out with a raise of uninterested eyebrows. Taking another drink. 'Ahhing' at the taste.

"That's evil" his voice rumbles.

"I did learn from the best," she assures. Resting her chin into her palms. Fluttering owlish eyes up at him.

He thinks about the hot water. Smells the lavender bubbles – (that does not compare to the aroma of her apple and cinnamon scent) – that will barely conceal her nakedness.

Feels the silk of her skin beneath his murderous fingers; sliding and roaming the planes of her flesh. A country all for its own. He craves those cherry lips that will bleed like wine.  
A flavor warmed by the heat of the bath. By the touch of his hand. By the breath of her moans.

He lets out a long sigh. Who's he kidding? He runs a hand down his face. This is her battle to win.

"So if I just try one," he puts emphasis on _try_ with reason, "we can…" he points between them and then holds up the Champaign, "drink and all?"

She sits back now, lounging in her throne. A queen and her peasant.  
She nods, "yes."

"Scouts honour?"

A victorious grin. "Scouts honour."

His eyes drop down to the dish again and Caroline wonders if he's changed his mind. But then he reaches for the fork, (non-too-earnestly) and punctures it with malevolence.

And prays it'd be over soon.

He swallows, suppressing a sluggish shudder to crawl over him.

Instantly taking the cup from her outstretched hand he chugs down the content.  
"See" she says, "wasn't too bad."

He daggers her with his eyes. "Are we done!" he fumes "can we go?"  
A soft expression – a heavy thought sitting upon her shoulders, her lips pull up just _so_ (he wonders if she's changed her mind). "Come on then."

The thoughtfulness in her tone tears the carpet from his feet and he's caught in the flight.

Jumping from his seat he walks to her side. "One second, love" he turns and grips the neck of the wine "for later," He wonders if he will ever get used to this predicative version of rapunzul. With golden hair that squeezes around him like a python, reminding him just how easily she transforms him from hunter to prey.

Perhaps she'll unveil so much more than just her flesh beneath thin white sheets, perhaps the heart she holds in her hand will be given away – he ponders what he will do with it… devour it? Relish in the taste? Or grip tight, and hope the beating of her heart will restore the quelled stillness of his own.

* * *

"Well, well, well. Look who caught himself a stunner for a pet."

Caroline doesn't need to raise her eyes to know who speaks. The dripping arrogance, the heavy scent of self-admiration makes her want to barf.

Kol leans against the counter, cants his head to the side and drinks her in. "Carol… was it?"

"It's Caroline," she responds, rather despondent as she searches for Klaus to return from paying the bill.

"Kol?" Klaus' eyes light up upon his brothers' arrival, the wine bottle still hanging between his fingers. The evening festivities almost forgotten when Kol responds.

"Long time, brother."

Klaus laughs, drawing his sibling in for a hug. Caroline doesn't miss the taught flex of muscles from the younger Mikaelson boy. As if he awaits a dagger to the heart.

"What are you doing here?" Klaus pulls away.

"Meeting a friend here for a drink," Kols suddenly stands straighter, "a _friend _you may remember."

"Well," Klaus nods, suddenly keen on vacating his brothers presence, "enjoy yourselves. Perhaps I'll see you soon."

As they begin around him, Kols' face droops with sudden disappointment and grips the bend of Caroline's arm to trigger a response from his older brother, "you mean you won't stay?"

Klaus steps forward, breaking the contact Kols has on the blonde beauty. "Caroline and I were just on our way –"

"No Klaus, it's fine." Caroline is the one to interrupt him. He turns to her, a thin line for lips. A warning in his stance. One she ignores willfully.

"I wouldn't mind meeting this _friend _of yours."

Kols claps his brother on the shoulder, "there you have it. See Nik, the girl must get what she wants!" Both Klaus and Caroline slice Kol with their metallic glares when he winks.

Before Caroline slides into the booth, Klaus interjects her, stares her down with his infinite forge of danger, "Caroline, I'm not asking to go back to our hotel, if your mind has changed – that is ok. But, let's just go to the arch of triumph or the Eiffel tower. It's rather spectacular at night."

"You seem unusually worried about me meeting a," she goes to the extent of using air quotes, something of which Kol thoroughly enjoys, "_friend."_

"Caroline don't be absurd…" His words fall short as his eyes catch something over her shoulder.

And then a soft voice sounds from behind her, "Klaus,"

Caroline turns and sees a woman with raven hair that falls below her waist in lush waves. Green feline eyes that can make anything shiver when pinned under her entrancing gaze.

"Abiageal," he barely breathes her name. Fingers fisted by his side, something neither of the women overlook.

Her small pink lips pull into a weary grin, "it's been a while."

She stands a little straighter and continues lightly, "I'd say too long, but…"

"… not long enough."

* * *

"Don't be jealous, darling."

Caroline tears her eyes away from Klaus and Abiageal drinking by the bar and sets guarded eyes on Kol.

"I'm not jealous."

With a humorous laugh, Kol holds his arms up in defeat, "Okay. Of course you're not. I mean, why would you be jealous of someone Klaus had a connection with decades ago, if you have no sort of affection for my brother whatsoever."

Caroline doesn't entertain him with an answer, just tries to ignore the surge of fire swelling in her belly. And yet thinks pathetically that this should happen. What was she thinking?! Inviting him to bathe with her? and who knows what else.

_No_! She thinks defiantly. _I wouldn't have let anything more happen. It's all a game… I just need to get that stake. _

"You know what I can't help but wonder?"

She rolls her eyes, exasperated, "and what's that?"

"What is it my brother promised you?" Kol murmurs thoughtfully.

"Excuse me?"

"You must have struck a deal, to voyage with him across the seas…Unless…"

"What?"

"Perhaps he's shown you an extraordinary time in places forbidden?"  
Caroline bends the fork in her fingers, "Are you serious?!"

"Not completely _there,_ than." He waggles his eyebrows, "though, _something_ in you desires an exploration."  
"You should probably shut up before I punch that pretty little smile off your pretty little face."  
"You think me pretty, Darling?"

"But, correct me than. It isn't false, my assumption…" Kol leans in now, bends low to read her expression, "you've dreamt of it, haven't you? Doing the dirty with my brother, beneath the sheets?"

Her cheeks flare, so she grits out (feigning the rise of blood for anger, _not_ embarrassment) "Kol – "  
"You're blushing." He interrupts with a mischievous glint dancing in his eyes, "It's alright, darling. I have that effect on women."

He spins the salt shaker, eyes trailed on its blurred rotation. "Then again, maybe my other theory holds more truth then speculation."

Caroline, the girl Klaus has deemed a princess, a warrior, a hero of her own story, does not anticipate this.

"I mean, why would a girl, who is assumed to be repulsed by the hybrid beast offer herself to him? Gladly dine and amuse him when all she wants is to be free of him?" He continues to fiddle with the utensils, does not look at her, "Does she expect to find something?"

Caroline's voice quivers with rage that conceals her fear, "Or maybe she isn't a sociopathic freak who cares only about herself. Maybe she genuinely sacrificed herself in the hopes to free her friends – maybe you don't know what those are. And just maybe, she thinks there's still hope to redeem – " She slams her mouth shut, internally scathes her throat for even talking.

"Redeem who? Klaus?" Kol chuckles, cold and cruel, "darling, there is no redemption for any vampires. Especially not for my brother."

Caroline slams her hand on the salt shaker, startles even this homicidal maniac, "news flash, _darling_, you're not as smart as you think. And to ease your mind, I don't particularly care what you all think it means to be a vampire. I've met many humans and not all of them are the same. By that logic, I don't have to be like you – or this expectation you have declared to be _true vampirism_. I'll be whatever and whoever I want to be. I've had my childhood taken, my father taken and even my life! But no one will take away my choice!"

Kols lips slowly stretch into a smile that is so much more than just pure patronization. There is a level of admiration, a minute trance of respect.

"I see why my brother takes such a liking to you, Caroline." He finally says.

"Oh?" Caroline slouches back now, eyebrows raised in mock interest. "And whys that?"

"You have certain…qualities," Kol begins and stretches his arms against the back of his chair.  
"Back when we were the things we hunt now… You share such characteristics with her, it doesn't seem so strange now, why he was drawn to you."

"Wait… what? Characteristics of whom?"

"Kol," his name is called before he even contemplates delivering an answer.

"Now, would you look at that." He looks at his watch – really enjoys the pull of her eyebrows, "Just on the buzzer, I must take my leave." He stands and looks down at her, a wide smile pulling his lips back, "don't pout, Darling, it suits you too much."

He stops before completely turning his back on her and says, "The moment you get bored of my brother, you are more than welcome to grace me with your company. I'm sure we can benefit each other immensely. And before I forget, perhaps your choice is your own – but there is no changing Niks." Then he's gone with a blink of the eyes.

"Caroline Forbes,"

Caroline's eyes flit up just in time to watch Abiageal fit herself into the booth with such fluid grace, miss mystic falls has to bite down on envy's tale.

Abiageal's sharp green eyes, dotted grey, sparkle when she smiles.

"Can we have a word?"

**TBC**

* * *

**I SWEAR THERE WILL BE MORE ROMANCE BETWEEN THEM! lol. But I thought maybe we could have a little light hearted silliness from the both of them!**  
**GUYS! how are we all dealing with no Vampire Diaries and the anticipated wait for The originals! Are we excited? Nervous? Angry? I for one am not OKAY with this Hiatus! What are you hoping to see? Do we like the whole Klaus and Haley baby story line?! **  
**... Ok I'm going to stop rambling. Leave a review, for critique purposes, complimentary or you know... don't ahaha!**


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